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PRESENTED  BY 

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BURIED  CITIES  RECOVERED, 


OR, 


E^^plofatsion^  in  Bible  Land^, 


GIVINC;    THE    RESULTS    OF    RECENT    RESEARCHES    IN  THE  ORIENT,  AND  RECOVERY 

OF  MANY  PI.Aj  ES  IN  SACRED  AND  PROFANE  HISTORY 

LONG   CONSIDERED    LOST. 


^(llu.«itratci!  irith  ^eiv .^a^s ^ ^umcrou.s Original ^i^ngraiiiigs. 


FRANK  S.jDeHASS,  D.  D. 

Member  of  the  American  Geogviphical  Society,  and  late  United  Stales  Consul  in  Palestine. 


REVISED  EDITION,  WITH  APPENDIX. 

CONTAINING   A    FULL   ACCOUNT    OF    E(;YPT   AND    THE  KGYITIANS,  RISE  AND  FALL 
OF  EMPIRES  IN  THE  LIGHT  OF  PROPHECY,  AND  WONDERFUL  CON- 
FIRMATION OF  REVELATION  BY  LATE  DISCOVERIES. 


PHILADELPHIA: 
BRADLEY   &    COMPANY, 

66  North  Fourth  Street, 
1889 


Copyright,  1 886,  by 
F.  S.   DeHASS,  D.   D. 


AI.l.    RIGHTS    RKSERVKD. 


DEDICATION. 


TO  MY  NUMEROUS  FRIENDS, 
WHO  HAVE  REQUESTED  THE  PUBLICATION  OF  THESB  SKETCHES; 

TO  THE  AVIFE  OF  MY  YOUTH, 
WHO  ACCOMPANIED  ME  IN  ALL  MY  TRAVELS  THROUGH  THE  ORIENT; 

TO  MY  AGED  MOTHER, 
■WHO  EARLY  TURNED   MY  WAYWARD   FEET  INTO  THE  PATH  OF  LIFE; 

\ 

TO   THE   MEMORY  OF 

MY  HONORED  AND  SAINTED  FATHER, 

WHO,  AS  HIS  SON  WAS  EXPLORING  THE  EARTHLY,  PEACEFULLY  DEPARTED 

FOR  THE  HEAVENLY,   CANAAN; 

AND  ABOVE  ALL, 

TO   GOD, 

WHO   HATH  GRACIOUSLY   PRESERVED   ME   IN  ALL  MY  J0URNEYING8  AT  HOMP. 

AND   ABROAD, 

I   AFFECTIONATELY   DEDICATE 


INTRODUCTION. 

rilHE  author's  object  in  accepting  an  appointment  under  the 
-■-  United  States  Government  was  not  the  honor  or  emolu- 
ments of  office,  but  a  desire  to  visit  the  lands  of  the  Bible,  that 
he  might  see  for  himself  how  far  the  manners,  customs,  and 
traditions  of  the  people  and  topography  of  those  countries  agreed 
with  the  inspired  word. 

These  sketches  were  originally  written  for  our  own  gratifica- 
tion, amid  the  vivid  scenes  where  the  events  described  occurred ; 
and  it  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  nearly  all  the  places  mentioned 
in  the  Bible  where  any  great  event  transpired  may  still  be  identi- 
fied by  their  old  Hebrew  names  in  the  Arabic  form — a  most 
wonderful  philological  corroboration  of  the  Biblical  narrative. 

Recent  explorations  in  the  East  have  resulted  in  the  recovery 
of  many  places  in  sacred  and  profane  history  long  regarded  as 
lost ;  and  as  the  facts  brought  out  by  these  researches  are  not 
accessible  to  the  general  reader,  the  author  has  compiled  them  in 
this  concise  form,  and  at  the  request  of  numerous  friends  gives 
them  to  the  public,  not  as  a  scientific  work  for  the  antiquarian, 
but  as  an  humble  contribution  to  Biblical  archaeology  for  the  home 
circle,  believing  that  such  a  volume  will  add  greatly  to  the 
elucidation  of  the  Scriptures,  and  serve  to  correct  some  of  the 
errors  which  many  travellers  have  fallen  into  by  a  too  hast^^or 
superficial  view  of  the  places  visited. 

Palestine,  the  great  centre  of  religious  interest,  though  com- 
paratively a  small  mountainous  country,  has,  nevertheless,  been 

9 


10  INTRODUCTION. 

the  theatre  of  the  most  stirring  and  momentous  events  in  the 
history  of  our  world.  Learned  divines,  historians,  and  anti- 
quarians for  ages  have  been  visitihg  this  land,  giving  us  glowing 
descriptions  of  their  travels,  with  the  results  of  their  investiga- 
tions, until  our  libraries  teem  with  volumes  on  these  subjects ; 
and  yet  the  desire  to  know  more  about  this  country  w'as  never 
greater  than  at  present.  No  other  land  is  so  fruitful  a  theme 
for  meditation  or  so  hallowed  in  its  associations;  and  what  is 
remarkable,  it  never  loses  its  interest.  It  can  no  luore  be  ex- 
hausted than  Deity  himself.  The  more  we  know  about  Pales- 
tine the  more  interest  it  awakens.  The  whole  country  seems  to 
breathe  an  inspiration,  and  to  the  devout  mind  is  fragrant  with 
the  most  sacred  memories.  ' 

The  author's  official  position,  together  with  his  long  residence 
in  Jerusalem,  and  his  connection  with  the  American  and  English 
Palestine  Exploration  Societies,  afforded  him  many  facilities  in 
his  researches  he  otherwise  could  not  have  enjoyed ;  and  under 
the  conviction  that  the  publication  of  these  investigations  will 
not  only  add  to  the  knowledge  but  greatly  strengthen  the 
Christian's  faith,  he  casts  these  fresh  leaves  upon  the  waters,  with 
the  sincere  prayer  that  they  may  not  return  void,  but  tend  to 
correct  in  some  measure  the  perverse  tendency  of  the  age  to 
doubt  the  credibility  of  the  inspired  volume. 

Frank  S.  DeHass. 

New  York,  October,  1886. 


CONTENTS. 


PART  I. 

EGYPT,  IN  ITS   RELATION  TO  THE  BIBLE. 
CHAPTER  I. 

PAGE 

Our  Inhekitance  in  Egypt— The  Bible  Written  on  her  Monuments.    28 

CHAPTER  XL 
Alexandria— Seat  of  Greek  Philosophy  and  Christian  Theology.    33 

CHAPTER  III. 
Heliopolis,  Pyramids,  and  Colossal  Sphinx 42 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Memphis,  the  Noph  of  Scripture— Necropolis  of  Egypt 53 

CHAPTER  V. 
Thebes,  the  No-amon  of  the  Bible— Grand  Temple  of  Karnak 60 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Island  of  Phil^,  Last  Seat  of  Egyptian  Idolatry 81 

CHAPTER  VII. 
The  Exodus— Passage  of  the  Red  Sea  ;  Wilderness  of  Wandering.    90 

PART  II. 

THE  LAND  OF  ISRAEL. 

CHAPTER  I. 
The  Promised  Land— Its  Early  Inhabitants  and  Conquest 109 

CHAPTER  II. 

Jaffa  to  Jerusalem— Tent  Life  in  the  Holy  Land 119 

11 


12  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  III.  „.^„ 

PAGE 

City  of  the  Great  King — A  Walk  about  Zion 133 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Moriah— The  Mountain  of  the  Lord's  House — Solomon's  Temple...  145 

CHAPTER  V. 
Golgotha  and  Tomb  of  Christ— Traditional  Sites 160 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Royal  Sepclcher  of  the  House  of  David— Rock-hewn  Tombs 172 

CHAPTER  VII. 
Easter  Festivities  in  Jerusalem— Solemn  Mockeries 183 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Bethlehem,  and  Hill  Country  of  Judea— Locusts  and  Wild  Honey.  191 

CHAPTER  IX. 
Pools  of  Solomon— Cave  of  Adullam— Tomb  of  Herod 202 

CHAPTER  X. 
Hebron— Cave  of  Machpklah— Beer-sheba— Well  of  Abraham 213 

CHAPTER  XI. 
Land  of  the  Philistines- An  Extinct  Race 224 

CHAPTER  XII. 
Sea-coast  of  Palestine— Plain  of  Sharon— Ancient  Tyre 233 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
Mount  Carmel— Scene  of  Elijah's  Sacrifice— Convent  and  Grotto.  244 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
From  Jerusalem  to  Damascus— Bethel— Jacob's  Well— Galilee 253 

CHAPTER  XV. 
Down  to  Jericho— Valley  of  the  Jordan- Plain  of  Gilgal 278 


CONTENTS.  ]  3 

CHAPTER  XVI, 

PAGE 

The  Dead  Sea— Cities  OF  THE  Plain— Lot's  Wife 294 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
Fortress  of  Masada,  Engedi,  and  Cliff  of  Ziz 305 

PART  III. 

TRANS-JORDANIC  PALESTINE. 

CHAPTER  I. 

The  Land  of  Moab— Fortress  of  Mach^rus— Prison  of  John  the 

Baptist 315 

CHAPTER  II. 
Hot  Springs  of  Calirrhoe— Moabite  Stone  and  Pottery 329 

CHAPTER  III. 
Mount  Pisgah- Grand  Outlook  from  its  Summit 341 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Land  of  GiLEAD— Remarkable  Ruins— Wild  Sons  OF  Ishmael 350 

CHAPTER  V. 
Stone  Cities  of  Bashan  and  the  Hauran— Giant  Races 366 

CHAPTER  VI. 
The  Land  of  Uz— Traditional  Palace  of  Job 382 

CHAPTER  VII. 

ARGOB  AND  PaBAN-ARAM— HaRAN  PROBABLY  IN  SYRIA 393 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Latest  Discoveries  in  Assyria  and  Palestine-Recovery  of  Nineveh  404 

CHAPTER  IX. 
Northern  Syria— Damascus— Baalbec—Ephesus— Athens 431 


14  CONTENTS. 

PART  IV. 

ASIA  MINOR. 
CHAPTER  I. 

PAGE 

Ancient  Anatolia— Turkish  Rule— Lost  Arts 4o7 

CHAPTER  II. 
Seven  Churches  of  Asia— Temple  of  Diaxa— Athens 474 

CHAPTER  III. 
Rise  and  Fall  of  Empires  in  the  Light  of  Prophecy 501 

CHAPTER  IV. 
The  Crusaders— Their  Object  and  Heroes 521 

APPENDIX. 

CHAPTER  L 
Egypt  and  the  Egyptians 537 

CHAPTER  II. 
The  Soudan  and  El  Mahdi ..  559 

CHAPTER  III. 
MuLTUM  IN  Parvo— Very  Latest  Discoveries 671 


JEWISH  COINS. 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAOB 

Aaron's  Tomb 171 

Adonis,  River. .  .        440 

Aduliara,  Cave  of 207 

Alexandria,  Modern 34 

Ali  Diab,  Sheik  of  the  Adwansr 351 

Anaerican  Consulate,  Jerugalem Frontispiece 

Apis,  or  Sacred  Bull  67 

Arabs  Eating 352 

Arak  el  Emir,  Rock-hewn  Palace. . 356 

Arch,  Ecce  Homo 134 

Askelon,  Ruins  of 228 

Assyrian  Black  Obelisk 411 

As.syrian  Sculpture  and  Seals 408,  409,  414,  415 

Assyrian  Tablet  of  the  Deluge 412 

Baalbec,  Great  Stone 436 

Baalbec,  Ruins  of  Temple 430 

Baal,  Head  of 385 

Banias,  Grotto  and  Source  of  the  Jordan 274 

Bedouin  Camp 352 

Beelzebub,  Image  of 425 

Beersheba 221 

Bethlehem,  Church  of  the  Nativity 189 

Bloody  Way 279 

Bozrah,  Ruins  of 378 

Bridge,  Natural,  Mt.  Lebanon 441 

Bridge,  Robinson's 150 

Calirrhoe,  Hot  Springs 331 

Camels,  Ships  of  the  Desert 97 

Camp  Life  in  the  Holy  Land.      112 

Cai>ernauni  and  Sea  of  Galilee 269 

Ca.stle  of  Subeibeh,  Mount  Hermon 276 

Cave  under  Dome  of  the  Rock 152 

Cedars  of  Lebanon 438 

Cesarea  Philippi,  Banias 272 

15 


16  LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 

tAOt 

Church  of  the  Ascension ^ . .    141 

Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulcher 161 

Coins,  Ancient  Jewish,  Widow's  Mite ...  473 

Colossal  Statues,  Thebes 75 

Convent  of  St.  Catharine 99 

Crucifixion 185 

Damascus,  View  of 432 

Damascus,  Wall  and  East  Gate 433 

Dead  Sea,  from  Engedi 310 

Donkey  of  Alexandria 37 

Down  to  Jericho 280 

Dromedary  Biding 271 

Egyptian  Boat,  Ancient 41 

Egyptian  Brick 73 

Egyptian  Funeral 59 

Egyptian  Gate-way .    21 

E^ptian  Eemains,  Island  of  Philse 79 

Egyptian  Sculpture — Hebrews  Making  Brick 25,  86 

Egyptian  Temple,  Exterior 69 

Egyptian  Temple,  Interior 31 

El  Aksa,  Temple  Inclosure 158 

El  Kuzneh,  Petra 103 

Engedi  and  Cliff  of  Ziz 310 

Ephesus,  Ruins  of 479 

Fish  Poolsof  Heshbon 321 

Flight  into  Egypt 24 

Flint  Knives,  from  Tomb  of  Joshua 284 

Ford  of  the  Jordan 285 

Fountain  at  Tomb  of  Dorcas 182 

Gadara,  Buins 363 

Gate  of  Damascus,  Jerusalem 254 

Gate-way  of  the  Sik,  Petra 102 

Gethsemane  and  Olivet 138 

(Jolden  Gate,  Temple  of  Solomon 146 

Grapes  of  Palestine 365 

Great  Sea  under  Temple  Court 147 

Grecian  Temple — Hauran 392 

Grinding  at  the  Mill 136 

Hadrian's  Statue,  Head  of 427 

Haggai's  Seal 154 

Hebrew  Inscriptions 422 

Hebron 219 

Hezekiah's  Pool  and  Dome  over  the  Tomb  of  Christ .   170 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS.  17 

PAOB 

Hiram's  Tomb .^ 242 

Hyrcanus,  Castle  of 355 

Inscribed  Eocks — Wady  Mukatteb  .    .  100 

Jacob's  Well 175 

Jaffa,  from  the  Sea 121 

Jerash,  Mahanaim 360 

Jericho,  Ruin 287 

Jerusalem,  Plan  of  the  City 131 

Jerusalem,  View  from  Olivet   125 

Jerusalem,  View  from  the  Wall 144 

Jew,  Polish 117 

Jew's  Wailing  Place 129 

Job's  Traditional  Palace,  Eunaw^t 388 

Joseph's  Tomb 175 

Karnak,  Temple  of 64 

Kedron  Valley 135 

Kirjath  Jearim — Emmaus 122 

Lamps,  Egyptian 89 

Last  Judgment,  Egyptian 86 

Levitical  Cities,  Plan  of 423 

Lotus  of  the  ]!sile 32 

Luxor,  Ruins  of 61 

Machserus,  Fortress  of 328 

Maps  of  Palestine  and  Gulf  of  Suez 3,  91 

Mars'  Hill,  Athens 498 

Masada,  Fortress  and  Synagogue 307 

Moabite  Pottery  and  Images 345 

Moabite  Stone 336 

Moabite  Vase  and  Inscription 420 

Mosque  of  Omar 155 

Mountains  East  of  Dead  Sea 297 

Mount  Carmel  and  Convent 245 

Mount  Tabor 249 

Mummy  Case,  Egyptian 55 

Nablous,  Ancient  Shechem 260 

Nazareth   263 

Nineveh,  Excavations 405 

Oak  of  Abraham 215 

Oak  of  Bashan 358 

Obelisk,  Heliopolis 44 

Palm  Trees 201 

Pompey's  Pillar 36 

Pools  of  Solomon 203 


18  LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


P&QE 


Pyramids 46 

Quarantania,  Mount  of  Temptation 291 

Kabbah  Ammon 318 

Racliel's  Tomb 192 

Kainesiuai,  Colossal  Statue 74 

Rehoboam,  Son  and  Successor  of  Solomon 67 

Robber's  Retreat 265 

Rock-cut  Tombs,  Jewish 181 

Rock-hewn  Tombs — Interior. . . . , 174 

Samaria,  Ruins 261 

Sealed  Fountain 204 

Seals,  Assyrian 414,  415 

Smitten  Rock 223 

Sphinx 61 

Sphinx,  Theban 62 

Springs  of  Moses,  Mount  Pisgah 344 

Stone  Houses  of  the  Hauran,  Stone  ^Door 371,  397 

Stork  and  Nest 480 

Suez  Canal 40 

Table-ware,  Egyptian 72 

Temple  of  Isis,  Island  of  Philae 84 

Tomb  of  Bishop  Kingsley 442 

Tomb  of  Christ 165 

Tomb  of  David,  with  Diagram 177,  179 

Tomb  of  Joseph 175 

Tomb  of  the  Judges 173 

Tombs  of  the  Kings,  Egypt 544 

Tyre 240 

Vaults  under  the  Temple  Platform 143 

Water-Wheel  for  Irrigation 277 

Well  of  Abraham 221 

Wells  of  Moses 95 

Wilderness  of  Judea 1 98 

Winged  Globe,  Egyptian 63 

Winged  Lion,  Nineveh 408 

Wooden  Statue,  found  at  Memphis 27 


PART  I. 

EGYPT  IX  ITS  RELATION  TO  THE  BIBLE. 

■'  Tlie  Lord  did  bring  the  children  of  Israel  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt  .  .  .  with 
a  mighty  hand,  and  with  an  outstretched  arm."  Exod.  xii,  51;  Deut.  xxvi,  8. 


EGYPTIAN   GATE-WAT. 


BURIED  CITIES  RECOVERED, 

OR, 

RECENT  EXPLORATIONS  IN  BIBLE  LANDS. 


CHAPTER  I. 


OUR   INHERITANCE   IN  EGYPT. 


Oldest  Civilized  Portion  of  the  Globe — The  Bible  written  on  her  Monuments — 
Eg3'-ptian  Chronology — No  Conflict  with  the  Mosaic  Account — History  Lost 
in  Mystery — Tlie  "  Rosetta  Stoue  " — Religion  of  the  Old  Egyptians. 

THE  present  century  has  been  noted  for  its  discoveries  in 
science  and  explorations  among  the  ruins  of  the  past. 
Europe  and  America  liave  been  vying  with  each  otlier  in  the 
recovery  of  lost  arts,  lost  languages,  lost  cities,  and  lost  nations. 

Thus  far,  no  discovery  has  been  made  that  conflicts  with  Rev- 
elation. These  disentombed  cities  are  not  composed  of  dead 
walls,  but  living  stones,  witnessing  to  the  truth  of  Scripture. 

Egypt  and  Palestine  are  so  closely  related,  and  their  histories 
so  interwoven,  it  is  difficult  to  write  about  the  one  without  includ- 
ing the  other,  as  so  many  events  in  sacred  history  transpired  in  the 
valley  of  the  Nile.  Abraham,  when  driven  by  famine  from  Ca- 
naan, found  here  a  home  and  plenty  ;  the  beautiful  narrative  of 
Joseph  is  located  here  ;  Jacob  and  his  sons  settled  here  in  the 
land  of  Goshen  ;  here  Moses  was  born,  and  tlie  Passover  was  in- 
stituted ;  the  wife  of  Solomon  was  a  daughter  of  the  reigning  Pha- 
raoh ;  and  hither  the  holy  family  fled  for  safety  from  the  bloody 

23 


24 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


sword  of  Herod ;  thus  fulfilling  the  prophecy,  "  Out  of  Egypt 
have  I  called  my  Son."^  And,  what  is  very  remarkable, 
many  names  mentioned  in  the  Scriptures,  such  as  Ham, 
Mizraim,  Potiphar,  Shishak,  Asenath  the  wife  of  Joseph, 
and  others,  are  still  found  written  on  her  monuments,  and 
many  incidents  of  the  Bible  are  recorded  in  sculpture  and 
hieroglyphics  on  her  grand  temples.  In  one  place  we  have 
what  appears  to  be  a  representation  of  Joseph  introducing  his 


itUl.NS    OF    MlLill'lilb — J:  ALLEN    hTAiLL   OF    KAilLfcES   11.* 


brethren  to  Pharaoh ;  in  another,  the  Hebrews  making  brick, 
with  a  decree  ordering  them  to  build  the  temple  and  quarry 
stone  for  Rameses;  their  task-masters  standing  by  with 
scourge  in  hand  urging  them  "  not  to  be  idle ;"  and  in  still 
another,  an  account  of  the  exodus,  or  a  race  of  strangers 
going  up  out  of  Egypt  and  setthng  in  Syria,  under  a  leader 
by  the  name  of  Osarsiph,  which  is  identical  with  that  of  Moses, 
the  name  being  derived  from  Osiris,  the  golden  Apis.  Also, 
an  account  of  plentiful  harvests,  and  the  filling  of  the  royal 

'Matthew  ii,  15.  *See  page  53. 


EGYPTIAN   CHRONOLOGY. 


25 


granaries  with  corn,  followed  by  a  great  famine,  agreeing  with 
that  which  prevailed  in  the  time  of  Joseph.^ 

Egypt  is  probably  the  oldest  civiHzed  portion  of  our  globe. 
Little,  however,  is  known  of  her  history  prior  to  Abraham ; 
in  fact,  nothing  reliable.  The  works  of  Manetho,  her  only  his- 
torian, who  wrote  B.  C.  285,  have  long  since  been  lost,  and 
all  we  know  of  his  writings  is  what  has  been  transmitted  to 
us  by  later  authors,  after  passing  through  many  hands,  and,  no 
doubt,  greatly  perverted. 


era3%*sst==&.^«ir^ 


./ 


EGYPTIAN    SCCLPTURE — HEBREWS    MAKING    BRICK. 


Some  claim  for  this  country  a  much  higher  antiquity  than 
the  Mosaic  chronology  or  the  facts  will  warrant,  as  must  ap- 
pear to  every  candid  reader  who  investigates  the  subject.  In 
dealing  with  this  question  of  chronology  we  shall  do  so  with 
reverence  and  freedom — reverence  for  every  thing  sacred  and 
venerable,  freedom  in  regard  to  the  opinions  and  theories  of 
others — with  the  one  desire  to  arrive  at  the  truth  in  relation  to 
the  age  of  those  wonderful  remains  that  mark  the  development 
of  our  world's  civilization. 

It  is  claimed,  for  example,  that  on  the  ancestral  tablets  only 

'See  Brcgsch's  "Histoire  d'Egypte,"  second  edition,  p.  lYT. 


26  BIBLE    LANDS. 

lately  recovered  the  names  of  certain  Pharaohs  are  found,  each 
reigning  so  many  years,  and  when  you  come  to  compute  the 
whole  list  it  carries  you  back  beyond  our  era  live  thousand 
years  or  more.  Which  is  true.  But  then  they  overlook  the 
important  fact  that  these  kings  did  not  reign  successively,  but, 
in  many  instances,  contemporaneously  ;  rival  Tharaohs  being 
on  the  thrones  of  Upper  and  Lower  Egypt  at  the  same  time, 
and  in  other  instances  father  and  son  were  associated  in  the 
government  of  the  counti-y.  Then  there  are  many  gaps  of 
omissions  in  these  tablets  which,  when  supplied  with  the 
proper  data,  remove  all  difficulties  in  harmonizing  the  Hebrew 
and  Egyptian  chronology. 

It  is  further  argued  that  the  sediment  deposited  during  tlie 
annual  overflow  of  the  Nile  accumulates  at  the  rate  of  so 
many  inches  in  a  century,  and  as  from  twenty  to  thirty  feet 
of  this  alluvial  deposit  are  found  over  some  of  these  buried 
cities,  they,  therefore,  must  be  from  six  to  eight  thousand 
years  old.  Tiiis,  however,  does  not  follow,  as  the  deposit  some 
years  is  much  greater  than  othei's,  and  forms  in  the  eddies  over 
these  ruins  much  faster  than  out  on  the  naked  plain.  This 
whole  argument  reminds  me  of  the  logic  of  a  noted  humorist,^ 
who,  in  ridiculing  the  theories  of  some  of  our  modern  scien- 
tists, says :  "  It  can  be  easily  demonstrated  that  the  Mississippi 
River,  by  washing  out  new  channels  across  her  great  bends,  has 
shortened  the  distance  between  Cairo,  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Ohio,  and  New  Orleans,  at  least  one  hundred  and  sixty 
miles  in  the  last  two  hundred  years;"  which  being  admit- 
ted, he  then  very  amusingly  concludes,  "that  if  this  process 
continues  for  two  thousand  years  longer,  New  Orleans  will 
be  where  Cairo  now  stands ! "     And  this  is  about  the  weight 

'  Mark  Twain. 


EGYPTIAN    REMAINS. 


27 


of  the  arguments  advanced  against  the  chronology  of  the 
Bible.  It  is  also  a  notable  fact  that  the  oldest  relics  found  in 
the  oldest  tombs  of  Egypt  are  wooden  coffins  and  idols, 
in  many  instances  not  the  least  decayed ;  embalmed  mummies, 
tlie  linen  wrappings  upon  them  scarcely  soiled ;  rolls  of  papyri 


WOODEN    STATUE.       ONE    OF    THE    OLDEST    RELIC'S   FOUND    IN   EGYPT. 


28  BIBLE   LANDS. 

as  legible  as  if  written  but  yesterday  ;  eggs,  looking  as  fresh 
as  if  just  taken  from  the  nest ;  garden  seeds  and  wheat, 
said  still  to  retain  their  vitality ;  loaves  of  bread,  different 
kinds  of  vegetables,  even  honey  in  the  comb ;  nothing  to  war- 
rant a  more  remote  antiquity  than  the  Mosaic  account,  espc' 
cially  if  we  adopt  the  Septuagint  standard.  And  what  makes 
these  statements  of  the  skeptic  appear  even  more  absurd  is 
the  fact  that,  in  some  of  these  cities  which  they  affirm  have 
been  buried  ten  thousand  years  or  more,  recently  have  been 
found  coins  and  pieces  of  pottery  belonging  to  the  Greek  and 
Roman  period.  And  the  zodiac  carved  on  the  ceiling  of 
the  temple  at  Denderah,  which  at  first  was  claimed  by  the 
French  to  be  from  fifteen  to  seventeen  thousand  years  old,  has 
since  been  proven  to  belong  to  tlie  first  centurj'  of  our  era. 

We  admit  that,  next  to  the  Bible,  the  monuments  of  Egypt 
•contain  the  earliest  chronological  history  of  our  race,  but  these 
records  are  not  entirely  reliable,  in  part  owing  to  the  lack  of 
proper  data  and  the  vagueness  of  the  Egyptian  year,  and  are 
not  sufficient  to  set  aside  tlie  authority  of  God's  word. 
Even  learned  Egyptologists  cannot  agree  on  certain  dates,  as 
by  comparing  the  statements  of  Bunsen,  Wilkinson,  Mariette, 
and  other  eminent  archaeologists,  you  will  find  a  discrepancy 
of  from  one  to  three  thousand  years  in  their  calculations.  So 
that  the  early  history  of  this  ancient  people  is  lost  in  mythical 
conjectures,  and  a  deep  mystery  still  hangs  over  the  land  of 
the  once  mighty  Pharaohs.  The  Nile,  so  mysterious  in  its 
source,  but  more  mysterious  in  its  annual  rise,  sweeps  on 
in  its  course  for  thousands  of  miles  under  a  cloudless  sky, 
causing  the  parched  desert  to  rejoice,  and  the  rainless  region 
through  which  it  flows  to  blossom  as  the  rose.  Along  the 
banks   of  this  sacred   river,  half-buried   in  the  ever-drifting 


ROSETTA  STONE.  29 

«ands,  are  the  ruins  of  many  temples,  the  fires  on  whose  altars 
have  long  since  been  extinguished,  and  the  remains  of  a  thou-. 
£B.T\d  cities  whose  histories  are  lost  in  the  misty  past.      /' 

Standing  upon  the  great  rock-bed  of  the  Libyan  desert  are 
those  wonderful  Pyramids  whose  origin  is  also  involved  in  im- 
penetrable mysteiy.  Who  conceived  or  executed  these  stu- 
pendous monuments  will,  more  than  likely,  forever  remain 
unknown.  Looking  down  upon  the  placid  waters  of  this 
renowned  stream  reclines  the  colossal  Sphinx,  the  local  deity 
of  the  ancient  Egyptians,  invested  with  the  same  mystery. 
And  in  whatever  direction  you  turn  your  eyes  the  mind  is 
appalled  as  it  contemplates  lone  obelisks,  of  vast  dimensions ; 
gigantic  statues,  wonderful  to  behold  ;  grand  edifices,  forming 
a  labyrinth  of  gorgeous  halls ;  the  origin  of  all  being  en- 
shrouded in  the  most  profound  mystery.  And  yet  this  obscur- 
ity imparts  a  peculiar  charm  and  romance  to  the  country. 
One  can  spend  days  and  weeks  amid  these  ruins  without  any 
sense  of  weariness,  not  knowing  what  moment  he  may  discover 
the  hidden  key  to  some  secret  door  that  may  unlock  the  mys- 
teries of  ages  or  lead  to  mines  of  untold  wealth. 

Since  the  discovery  by  the  French  of  the  celebrated  "  Ro- 
setta  Stone,"  *  at  the  mouth  of  the  Kile  in  the  summer  of 
1799,  and  its  translation  by  Champollion,  much  additional  light 
has  been  shed  on  the  hitherto  obscure  history  of  this  country. 
And  the  explorations  still  going  on  under  the  direction  of 
that  indefatigable  archaeologist,  Mariette  Bey,  furnish  us  with 

'  This  stone,  now  in  tlie  Briiish  Museum,  is  a  trilingual  tablet  of  black  basalt, 
containing  a  decree  in  honor  of  Ptolemy  Epiphanes,  B.  C.  196,  written  in  iliree 
different  languages — the  Greek,  the  liieroglj'pliic,  or  sacred  language  of  the  priests, 
and  the  demotic,  or  common  dialect  of  the  people.  The  decipliering  of  this  stone 
afforded  a  key  to  the  hitherto  mysterious  hieroglyphics  on  these  monuments, 
"«'hich  can  now  be  read  with  as  much  ease  as  any  other  dead  language. 


F-0  BIBLE  LANDS. 

many  additional  facts  toucliing  the  occupancy  of  the  land  by 
the  Jews,  and  the  religion  of  the  old  Egyptians,  proving  very 
conclusively  that  the  latter  had  no  clear  idea  of  the  immor- 
tality of  the  human  soul,  or  the  resurrection  of  the  body,  or 
other  biblical  truths,  before  the  settlement  of  the  Hebrews 
among  them.  We  also  find  that  in  their  religious  sentiments 
they  were  very  mucli  like  the  Jews,  both  being  of  a  deeply 
spiritual  turn  of  mind,  ever  contemplating  the  future,  but  in 
other  respects  very  dissimilar. 

The  Egyptians  were  polytheists  and  pantheists ;  God,  accord- 
ing to  their  idea,  not  being  a  person,  but  an  essence  diffused 
throughout  all  nature — animate  and  inanimate.  Many  of  their 
gods  were  creations  of  their  own  fancy,  some  of  them  the 
most  ludicrous  monstrosities.  Osiris,  their  principal  divinity, 
was  represented  in  Apis,  the  sacred  bull ;  Athor,  either  as  a 
cow  or  with  cow's  horns  on  her  head  ;  Thoth,  with  the  head  of 
an  ibis  ;  Anubis,  always  with  a  jackal's  head  ;  Kneph,  with  the 
head  of  a  ram  ;  Pasht,  with  a  lion's  or  cat's  head  ;  Sevak,  with 
the  head  of  a  crocodile  ;  Horus,  with  that  of  a  hawk  ;  Typhon, 
their  evil  genius,  as  an  ass,  with  many  others  equally  fanciful. 
Almost  every  animal,  bird,  and  insect  that  lives,  and  every 
vegetable  that  grows,  was  w^itli  them  an  object  of  divine  wor- 
ship, under  the  impression  that  the  gods  were  personified  in 
these  objects. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  Hebrews  believed  in  but  one 
Supreme  Being,  invisible,  all-wise,  and  eternal  !  Among  the 
Egyptians  every  temple  was  full  of  idols,  and  the  walls, 
ceilings,  and  columns  were  covered  with  sculptures,  paintings, 
and  inscriptions  from  top  to  bottom,  within  and  without,  all  in 
honor  of  their  gods.  And  every  statue  and  work  of  art,  from 
the  colossi  to  the  smallest  scarabee,  bore  the  image  of,  and  was- 


RELIGIOUS   IDEAS. 


31 


dedicated  to  some  god.  But  among  the  Jews  every  thing 
was  spiritual,  intellectual,  and  typical  of  something  purer 
grander,  and  more  enduring.  God  was  supreme  in  their 
thoughts  and  affections.     They  worshiped  not  by  sight,  but  by 


INTERIOR    OP   THE    TEMPLE    OF   ISIS. 


faith,  as  seeing  the  Invisible  himself ;  no  idol,  no  painting,  no 
inscription  of  any  kind,  has  ever  been  found  upon  all  the 
monuments  of  Israel  in  the  Holy  Land.   After  the  conquest  of 


32 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


Palestine  by  Alexander  we  lind  some  traces  of  Grecian  sculpt- 
ure and  inscriptions,  but  on  the  works  of  the  old  Hebrews- 
there  is  nothing  to  indicate  their  name,  age,  or  object,  which 
no  one  can  but  regret,  as  most  of  these  remains  are  without 
name  or  history. 

After  these  general  remarks  in  reference  to  the  history, 
chronology,  and  religious  ideas  of  this  ancient  nation,  we  shall 
proceed  to  notice  some  of  their  most  interesting  monumental 
remains,  showing  their  connection  with  our  faith  and  with  the 
sojourn  of  Israel  in  "  the  land  of  Ham." 


THE   LOTUS    OK   THK   MLE. 


CHAPTER  11. 

ANCIENT     ALEXANDRIA — SEAT     OF    GREEK    PHILOSOPHY    ANI> 
CHRISTIAN    THEOLOGY. 

Royal  City  of  Alexander  the  Great— Ancient  Splendor — The  Pharos — Cliris- 
tianity  early  Planted  here — Cleopatra's  Needle — Pompey's  Pillar — Modern 
City — Backsheesh — Oriental  Scenes — Veiled  Women — Dogs  —  Donkeys — 
Failnre  of  ilie  Khedive  to  conqner  Abyssinia — Suez  Canal  probably  first 
projected  by  Joseph. 

THE  tourist  from  America  or  Europe  visiting  Egypt  gener- 
ally lands  at  Alexandria,  founded,  by  the  great  general 
whose  name  it  bears,  B.  C.  332.  The  city  was  laid  out  by  Dinoc- 
rates,  architect  of  the  famous  temple  of  Diana  at  Ephesus,  who 
on  one  occasion  proposed  cutting  Mount  Athos  into  a  colossal 
statue  of  Alexander,  holding  a  city  in  one  hand  and  pouring 
out  a  river  from  the  other,  Alexandria,  being  situated  in  the 
Delta  of  the  Nile,  near  to  Asia  and  convenient  to  Europe,  was 
long  regarded  as  only  second  to  imperial  Rome,  and  is  still  the 
largest  commercial  city  in  Africa.  It  is  not  our  purpose,  how- 
ever, to  attempt  any  detailed  description  of  the  magnificence 
of  ancient  Alexandria,  with  its  four  thousand  palaces,  grand 
temples,  beautiful  gardens,  numerous  schools,  and  rich  collec- 
tions of  art.  The  far-seeing  Macedonian  designed  it  as  the  era 
porium  for  the  entire  East,  and  from  its  peculiar  circular  shape 
one  would  suppose  that  the  mighty  conqueror  reallj'  intended 
throwing  his  mantle  over  the  whole  world.  As  a  strategic 
point  Napoleon  considered  it  of  the  first  importance,  and  made 
it  the  base  of  operations  in  his  attempted  conquest  of  Asia. 

For  many  centuries  this  city  was  the  great  center  of  trade 

33 


34 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


and  learning,  wealth  and  power.  Here  the  Ptolemies,  Cleopatras, 
and  Caesars  reigned  in  all  their  glory ;  here  science,  literature, 
and  every  branch  of  philosophy  flourished ;  here  the  Hebrew 
Scriptures  were  first  translated  into  the  Greek,  B.  C.  280. 
Here,  also,  stood  the  famous  Pharos,  one  of  the  seven  wonders 
of  the  world,  a  light-house  five  hundred  and  fifty  feet  high, 
erected  by  Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  throwing  out  its  beacon  light 
for  a  hundred  miles  over  the  midnight  sea.     This  tower  was 


MODERN    ALEXANDRIA. 


A 


designed  as  a  memorial  of  the  king,  who  ordered  his  name  to 
be  inscribed  on  its  pediment ;  the  architect,  however,  first  cut 
his  own  name  in  the  solid  marble,  placing  over  it,  in  stucco, 
the  name  of  Ptolemy,  which  in  a  few  years  crumbled  to  dust, 
leaving  that  of  Sostratus,  the  architect,  emblazoned  through 
after  ages  on  the  front  of  this  unrivaled  monument. 

Christianity  was  early  planted  here,  according  to  some  histori- 


AXCIENT  ALEXANDRIA.  35 

ans,  by  the  Apostle  Peter.  St.  Mark,  it  is  believed,  was  the  fii*st 
Bishop  of  the  Church,  and  suffered  martyrdom  here.  Clement, 
Athanasius,  Origen,  Cyril,  and  other  eminent  divines  were  edu- 
cated here,  and  the  eloquent  ApoUos  was  a  native  of  this  city. 
JFrora  lower  Egypt  Christianity  rapidly  extended  to  Cyrene, 
Libya,  central  and  upper  Egypt ;  so  that  by  tiie  middle  of  the 
third  century  there  were  not  less  than  twenty  bishoprics  in 
Egypt ;  and  in  a  corrupt  form  the  Church  still  exists  among 
the  Copts,  or  natives  of  the  country.  This  old  seat  of  pagan 
philosophy  and  mysticism  soon  became  the  seat  of  Christian 
literature,  and  the  Alexandrian  School  ranked  among  the  oldest 
and  highest  Christian  institutions  of  learning  in  the  primitive  /^ 
■Church.  But  little  remains  of  her  ancient  grandeur.  Most  of 
the  old  city  lies  imbedded  beneath  the  deposits  of  the  Nile  and 
£ands  of  the  desert.  Her  invaluable  library  of  700,000  MSS., 
<;ontaining  a  copy  of  every  work  then  known,  and  collected 
with  so  much  labor  and  expense,  was  consigned  to  the  flames 
by  order  of  Caliph  Omar,  after  the  fall  of  the  city,  A.  D,  641. 

The  Serapeum,  the  last  temple  of  paganism  in  Alexandria, 
with,  its  exquisite  statues  and  v^ast  treasures,  was  destroyed  by 
Theodosiiis.  Even  the  tomb  of  Alexander  himself  can  no 
longer  be  identified,  and  not  a  vestige  of  the  celebrated  Pharos 
remains.  A  single  obelisk,  one  of  the  so-called  Cleopatra's 
Needles,  and  Pompey's  Pillar,  a  beautiful  red  granite  Corin- 
thian column,  one  hundred  feet  high,  including  base  and  cap- 
ital, and  ten  feet  in  diameter — the  largest  monolith  in  the 
world — still  stand  as  old  landmarks  of  this  once  opulent  city. 

Egypt,  under  the  lately  deposed  Khedive,  Ismail  Pasha,  grand- 
son of  Mohammed  Ali,  has  rapidly  advanced  in  civilization. 
Many  Europeans  are  settling  in  the  country  ;  new  railroads  and 
■canals  are  being  constructed ;  Christian  Churches  and  schools 


36 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


are  every-where  springing  up ;  and  Alexandria  is  sharing  largely 
in  this  general  prosperity,  is  lifting  her  head  out  of  the  dust 
of  ages,  and  is  fast  recovering  some  of  her  ancient  glory. 

The  city  contains  a  population  of  at  least  two  hundred  thou- 
sand, made  up  chiefly  of  Egyptians,  Nubians,  Arabs,  and  Turks  ;, 


■^^S^n^   ■  ^'■ 


pompey's  pillar. 


and  as  you  land  in  this  motley  crowd  the  first  word  that  greets 
your  ears  will  probably  be  hacksheesh — an  Arabic  word  you 
will  never  forget.  It  simply  means  some  small  gratuity,  and 
wherever  you  stroll  gangs  of  half-naked  natives  will  follow 


ORIENTAL    SCENES. 


37 


you  pleading  for  backsheesh.  Enter  any  mosque,  and  it  is 
backsheesh ;  go  up  or  come  down  the  pyramids,  or  go  any- 
where else,  and  you  hear  nothing  but  backsheesh  !  O  howadji ! 
backsheesh  !  !  backsheesh  !  !  !  Like  all  Oriental  cities,  the 
streets  of  Alexandria  are  narrow  and  filthy;  crowded  ^dth 
Arabs,  dogs,  and  donkeys.     The  latter  are  used  instead  of  street- 


ALEXAIJDRIAN   DONKEY. 


cars  for  all  short  excursions,  and  are  certainly  very  conven- 
ient little  animals — especially  for  a  tall  man,  as  he  can  ride  and 
walk  at  the  same  time  ;  and  the  dogs,  like  those  of  Cairo,  are 
very  dogmatic,  leading  lazy,  independent  lives,  having  no  mas- 
ters to  serve,  or  homes  to  guard — miserable,  ugly  curs,  ever 
growling  and  snarling  at  all  who  disturb  them  as  they  lie 
coiled  up  in  the  streets. 

This  is  the  land  of  sunshine  and  legends,  of  superstition  and 


88  BIBLE   LANDS. 

oppression.  Everj'  thing  to  the  stranger  appears  different  from 
every  thing  else  he  has  ever  seen  before.  The  turbaned  Turk, 
in  his  gay  attire,  sitting  in  his  cozj'  bazaar ;  the  long  caravans  of 
camels,  jogging  quietly  along,  with  nose  erect  and  eye  set  as  on 
Mecca ;  and  tlie  women,  veiled  from  head  to  foot,  moving  about 
like  phantoms,  make  up  sucli  a  picture  as  can  only  be  seen  in  the 
Orient.  In  the  East  yon  scarcely  ever  see  a  woman's  face  on 
tlie  streets.  A  man  does  not  even  see  his  intended  wife's  be- 
fore marriage,  and  not  then  unless  he  has  paid  for  her.  In 
Mohammedan  countries  all  brides  are  sold  to  the  highest  bidder, 
the  same  as  horses  or  camels,  the  money  to  be  paid  on  delivery. 
Even  after  marriage  the  wife  is  kept  like  a  prisoner  in  tlie 
liarem,  and  always  closely  veiled  when  she  appears  in  public. 
The  Arabs  have  a  proverb,  ''  When  a  wife  has  seen  the  guest, 
she  cares  no  more  for  her  husband  ;  "  hence  all  freedom  is  de- 
nied her,  and  she  spends  her  days  dreaming  of  a  liberty  she  has 
never  enjoyed.  Some  men  are  so  jealous  of  tlieir  wives,  it  is 
eaid,  they  will  not  allow  them  out  on  a  moonlight  night,  lest 
the  man  in  the  moon  should  see  them.  One  of  the  Khedive's 
wives  being  sick,  he  sent  for  our  American  physician  to  visit 
her ;  but  the  doctor  said  he  could  do  nothing  in  the  case  unless 
he  could  see  the  patient ;  but  as  that  privilege  could  not  be 
granted,  he  insisted  at  least  on  seeing  her  tongue.  So  they 
arranged  to  stretch  a  sheet  over  an  opening  in  the  wall,  with  a 
small  slit  cut  in  it,  through  which  the  patient  protruded  her 
tongue,  and  thus  the  doctor  was  enabled  to  presci'ibe. 

What  the  Khedive  lacks  in  the  development  of  his  country 
are  men  and  means  to  carry  out  his  projects.  His  dominion  at 
present  is  confined  to  the  narrow  valley  of  the  Nile,  with  a 
population  of  only  5,000,000,  not  enongli  for  a  great  nation ; 
but  far  away  to  the  south  of  him  lies  Abyssinia,  rich  in  prod- 


SUEZ   CANAL.  ii9 

ucts,  witli  a  population  equal  to  bis  own,  a  prize  his  father  long 
coveted.  Two  years  ago  the  late  Khedive  sent  an  army  into 
this  territory,  with  a  view  of  annexing  it  to  Egypt,  as  he  had 
done  witli  Nubia.  All  counted  on  the  success  of  the  campaign ; 
but  tlie  Abyssinians,  being  nominally  Christians,  fired  with  re- 
ligious ardor,  defeated  the  Egyptians  in  every  engagement,  and 
almost  exterminated  the  invading  army.-  The  reverse  had  a 
depressing  effect  on  the  Khedive,  who  fully  calculated  on  the 
easy  conquest  and  absorption  of  Abyssinia,  and  had  gone  so  far 
as  to  select  his  commissioners  to  arrange  details,  one  of  whom 
was  tlie  Protestant  Bishop  of  Jerusalem,  and  another  the  Cop- 
tic Patriarch  at  Cairo.  The  King  of  Abyssinia,  however,  was 
not  to  be  conquered  thus  easily,  and  when  commanded  by  the 
Khedive  to  lay  down  his  arms  and  surrender,  Johannes  very 
nobly  and  defiantly  replied,  "  I^ot  till  you  have  restored  to  me 
every  foot  of  territory  between  Jerusalem  and  Abyssinia." 
Since  then  peace  has  been  established  between  the  two  coun- 
tries, the  Khedive  indemnifying  King  John  for  the  expenses 
of  the  war. 

One  of  the  greatest  works  of  the  century,  if  not  the  greatest, 
was  the  completion  in  1S69  of  the  Suez  Canal,  connecting  the 
Red  Sea  with  the  Mediterranean,  at  an  outlay  of  $130,000.000 ! 
The  canal  is  eighty-six  and  a  half  miles  long,  two  hundred 
and  fift}'  feet  wide,  and  of  sufficient  depth  to  allow  the  largest 
vessels  to  pass  through  without  difficulty ;  thus  saving  in  the 
voyage  from  Europe  and  America  to  India  or  China  from 
five  to  seven  thousand  miles  in  distance,  and  about  a  month  in 
time. 

This  great  achievement  was  no  new  conception  of  the  French, 
but  the  completion  of  a  scheme  that  had  been  under  contem- 
plation for  three  thousand  years.     It  is  recorded  by  Strabo, 


40  BIBLE    LANDS. 

and  other  historians,  that  Raraeses  II.,  B.  C.  1340,  cut  a  canal 
between  the  Red  Sea  and  the  ]S'ile.  Others  attribute  the  work 
to  Sethi  I.,  a  century  earher,  under  whom  Joseph  served  as  gov- 
ernor, who  may  have  been  the  original  projector  of  this  grand 
improvement.^  Eight  centuries  later,  according  to  Herodotus, 
Necho  II.  enlarged  this  canal,  sacrificing  120,000  men  on  the 
work,  and  sent  a  fleet  through  it  to  circumnavigate  Africa. 


SUEZ    CANAL. 


When  the  Persians,  under  Cambyses,  B.  C.  525,  conquered  the 
country,  they  found  the  canal  no  longer  navigable  ;  but  Darius, 
son  of  Hystaspes,  re-opened  it.  In  the  course  of  centuries  it 
again  became  obstructed  with  the  sand,  and  was  restored  once 
more  by  the  Emperor  Trajan,  in  the  beginning  of  our  era,  from 
which  period  it  appeai-s  to  have  been  kept  open  until  finally 
filled  up  and  destroyed  by  the  Arab  Caliphs. 

It  remained,  however,  for  Xapoleon  III.  to  complete  this 
grand  work  of  ages  on  a  large  scale,  by  cutting  through  Menzaleh 

'  Joseph  introduced  the  system  of  irrigation  into  Egypt  by  cutting  canals  that 
still  bear  his  name,  and  distributing  the  waters  of  the  Nile  over  the  neighboring 
desert,  thus  reclaiming  a  large  district  of  waste  territory. 


SUEZ    CANAL. 


41 


and  the  Bitter  Lakes  a  maritime  canal  from  sea  to  sea ;  whicli  has 
proved  as  grand  a  success  as  the  enterprise  itself.  During  the 
year  1881 1,494  vessels,  carrpng  80,805  passengers,  passed  over 
this  highway  of  the  seas ;  the  receipts  from  freight  and  passen- 
gers amounted  to  $5,755,205,  and  its  traffic  is  yearly  increasing. 
England,  who  at  first  ridiculed  the  idea  of  a  ship-canal  across 
the  Isthmus  as  visionary,  was  the  first  to  profit  by  it ;  and  see- 
ing the  importance  of  keeping  up  regular  and  rapid  communi- 
cation with  her  East  Indian  Colonies,  has  lately  purchased  the 
Khedive's  interest  in  this  great  improvement ;  and,  with  Cyprus 
in  her  possession,  will  before  many  yeai*s  control  not  only  the 
■canal,  but  Egypt  and  the  whole  Levant. 


ANCIENT    EGYPTIAN   BOAT. 


\ 


CHAPTER  III. 

HELIOPOLIS  AND   THE   PYRAMIDS. 

The  On  of  Scripture — Grand  Temple  of  tlie  Sun — Ancient  Seat  of  Learning — 
Legend  of  the  Phoenix — One  solitary  Obelisk  all  that  Remains— The  Pyramids 
of  Ghizeh — Their  Origin  Invested  with  Mystery — Probably  Tombs  for  their 
gods  and  Kings — Latest  Speculations — Cheops  identical  with  Joseph,  the 
Hebrew — Piazzi  Smyth's  Theory — Colossal  Sphinx — Interesting  Legend — 
Reflections. 

HELIOPOLIS,  the  On  of  Scripture,  and  one  of  the  oldest 
cities  in  Egypt,  was  situated  at  the  head  of  the  Delta, 
a  few  miles  north  of  Cairo,  the  present  capital,  and  on  the 
borders  of  what  was  anciently  the  land  of  Goshen.  This  was 
the  city  of  the  grand  Temple  of  the  Sun,  where  the  golden 
Apis  was  worshiped,  and  was  the  great  seat  of  learning  among 
the  old  Egyptians.  Asenath,  the  wife  of  Joseph,  was  a 
daughter  of  the  high-priest  of  this  temple.'  Here  Moses  wa& 
educated  for  his  responsible  mission.  Here  Plato  and  other 
Greek  philosophers  obtained  most  of  their  knowledge  of  the 
natural  sciences;  and  here,  according  to  the  legend,  the  fabled 
Phcenix  was  consumed.  This  bird  was  exceedingly  beautiful, 
about  the  size  of  the  eagle,  with  a  plumage  that  shone  like  gold 
around  its  neck,  a  purple  body,  and  a  tail  of  blue  and  rose- 
colored  feathers.  It  wore  a  coxcomb  gill  under  its  neck,  and  a 
magnificent  crest  on  its  head.  Tliis  splendid-looking  bird  was 
supposed  to  live  five  hundred  years,  then  burn  itself,  and  rise 
again  from  its  own  ashes  young,  strong,  and  more  beautiful 
than  ever — a  symbol  of  the  resurrection  of  the  human  body. 

'  Gen.  xli,  45. 
42 


OBELISK   OF   HELIOPOLIS.  4o- 

Tlie  new  birth  of  this  fabulous  creature  always  took  place  at 
Ileliopolis.  The  priest  of  the  temple  kindled  a  fire  of  spices 
on  the  altar,  and  the  old  bird,  weary  of  life,  after  hovering 
for  a  few  moments  over  the  fumes,  alighted  in  the  flames 
and  was  soon  consumed.  On  the  second  day  after  the  burning 
a  small  worm  appeared  among  the  ashes  on  the  altar,  and  on 
the  third  day  the  Phoenix  rose  again,  more  beautiful  than  ever^ 
with  powers  of  endurance  warranted  to  last  five  hundred  years, 
longer. 

The  Temple  stood  at  one  end  of  a  large  inclosure,  three  miles- 
around,  the  walls  of  which  may  still  be  traced.  Through 
this  outer  court  there  ran  an  avenue  of  marble  sphinxes  and 
granite  obelisks  terminating  at  the  main  entrance  to  the  tem- 
ple ;  all  of  which  have  been  destroyed  or  removed  save  one 
lone  obelisk — the  oldest  in  Egypt — still  standing  as  erect  as 
when  first  elevated  upon  its  pedestal  four  thousand  years  ago, 
guarding  like  an  old  sentinel  the  tomb  of  this  long-buried  city. 

This  tapering  shaft  of  red  granite,  which  has  withstood  the 
storms  and  earthquakes  of  so  many  centuries,  is  about  seventy 
feet  high,  and  six  feet  three  inches  square  at  its  base.  The 
four  faces  are  beautifully  polished,  and  covered  with  hiero- 
glyphics and  symbolical  figures  deeply  cut  in  the  hard  rock, 
showing  great  skill,  and  that  it  was  erected  as  a  monumental 
record  by  Osirtasen  I.,  probably  B.C.  2080  years,  if  not  earliei'. 

The  Egyptian  name  for  these  columns  has  been  lost.  They 
were  called  "  obelisks  "  or  needles  by  the  Greeks,  and  the  two 
that  were  removed  from  here  to  Alexandria  by  the  Romans 
were  known  as  "  Cleopatra's  Needles,"  though  that  renowned 
woman  had  nothing  to  do  with  them.  One  of  these  famous 
needles  has  just  been  taken  to  England ;  the  other  has  been 
re  noved  to  America,  and  may  now  be  seen  at  the  eastera 


44 


13IBLE    LANDS. 


ontrance  to  the   Central  Park,  New   York,  thus   connecting 
the  earhest  and  latest  civilizations  of  our  world.^ 

The  Heliopolis  obelisk  formerly  stood  on  an  eminence  ;  now 
its  base  is  at  least  six  feet  below  the  neighboring  plain,  indicat- 
ing how  the  whole  lower  valley  of  the  Nile  is  gradually  filling  up. 
Within  ten  minutes'  walk  of  this  old  landmark  is  the  celebrated 
*'  Fountain  of  the  Sun,"  that  supplied  the  temple  with  fresli, 


Bweet  water,  the  only  living  spring  in  Egypt ;  and  overshadow- 

A        ing  this  fountain  is  the  venerable  sycamore-tree,  gnarled  with 

age,  under  whose  broad  branches,  it  is  said,  the  Holy  Family 

encamped  when  they  fled  to  Egypt  from  the  wrath  of  Herod. 

•The  author  was  in  Alexandria  at  the  time  the  English  removed  their  obelisk, 
and  through  Mr.  J.  Baldwin  Hay,  formerly  U^  S.  Consul-General  at  Beirut,  pre- 
sented to  the  late  Khedive,  on  the  16th  of  July,  ISYT,  a  request  that  the  remaining 
needle  be  given  to  the  United  States,  which  the  Viceroy  afterward  consented  to  do. 


THE   PYRAMIDS.  45 

"With  the  conquest  of  Egypt  by- the  Persians  tlie  glory  of  this 
city  departed.  With  the  rise  of  Alexandria  under  the  Greeks 
she  lost  her  prestige ;  and  with  the  birth  of  Christianity  Heli- 
opolis  died ! 

The  greatest  mystery,  and  oldest  chronological  records  in  ,^ 
Egypt,  if  not  in  the  world,  are  the  Pyramids — about  seventy 
of  which  are  still  standing  in  the  Valley  of  the  Nile.  The}'  be- 
long to  the  prehistoric  age,  and  are  among  the  earliest  monu- 
ments of  man.  Herodotus,  B.  C.  443.  speaks  of  them  as  of 
^reat  antiquity,  but  was  as  ignorant  of  their  origin  as  we  are. 

The  most  famous  are  those  near  Gliizeh,  midway  between  v^ 
■Cairo  and  Memphis.  They  stand  about  one  hundred  feet  above 
the  overflow  of  the  Nile,  on  the  rocky  ridge  forming  the  east- 
ern border  of  the  great  African  desert ;  and  the  earthquakes  of 
forty  centuries  have  failed  to  move  them  from  their  firm 
foundations.  \j^ 

The  largest,  known  as  the  Pyramid  of  Cheops,  is  seven  hun- 
dred and  sixtj'-four  feet  square  at  the  base,  and  rises  at  an  angle 
of  tiftytwo  degrees  to  the  height  of  four  hundred  and  eighty 
feet,  (originally  it  was  about  twenty  feet  higher,)  containing 
ninety  million  cubic  feet,  and  covering  an  area  of  more  than 
tliirteen  acres ;  being  larger  than  Madison  Square,  New  York, 
and  twice  the  height  of  Trinity  Church  spire.  All  this  is  solid 
masonry,  of  the  most  massive  kind.  Some  of  the  stones  are 
from  twenty  to  thirty  feet  long,  varj'ing  in  thickness  from 
three  to  five  feet,  evenly  dressed  and  laid  with  mortar  in  regular 
courses.  There  is  enough  material  in  this  pj-ramid  to  build  a 
city  as  large  as  Washington,  including  all  the  public  edifices. 
According  to  Herodotus,  four  hundred  thousand  men  were 
employed  twenty  years  in  the  erection  of  this  single  monu- 
ment.    They  are  all  constructed  on  the  same  general  principle : 


46 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


\       "  Oriented,"  or  facing  the  four  cardinal  points,  with  vaults  or 
chambers  within,  and  a  passage  leading  thereto. 

They  evidently  were  erected  as  tombs  or  mausoleums  for 
their  gods  and  kings,  as  they  are  always  located  in  the  midst  of 
mummy  pits.  AU  stand  west  of  the  Nile,  which  was  con- 
sidered the  region  of  death ;  and  in  all  explored,  sarcophagi  oi 
mummies  have  been  found ;  in  one,  an  embalmed  bull. 


The  entrance  to  the  Great  Pyramid,  the  comer-stone  of  our 
civilization,  which  was  originally  closed,  is  a  narrow  passage 
three  feet  five  inches  wide,  and  three  feet  eleven  inches  high,, 
on  the  north  face,  fifty  feet  above  the  base.  This  gangway 
appears  to  have  been  cut  after  the  pyramid  was  built.  On  en- 
tering this  contracted  passage  you  descend  at  an  angle  of 
twenty-seven  degrees  for  about  one  hundred  feet,  when  you  are: 

I 


PYRAMID   OF   CHEOPS.  47 

stopped  suddenly  by  a  granite  plug  closing  up  the  entry  en- 
tirely. Here,  to  avoid  this  obstruction,  you  make  a  short 
detour  to  the  right  upon  your  hands  and  knees,  and  by  clam- 
bering over  some  broken  stones,  and  through  a  hole  fourteen 
inches  in  diameter,  torch  in  hand,  and  almost  stifled  with  dust 
and  smoke,  you  emerge  into  an  ascending  passage,  no  larger 
than  the  one  you  entered,  and  rising  at  the  same  angle,  up 
which  you  climb  with  great  difticulty  into  the  grand  gallery 
that  leads  to  the  queen's  and  king's  chamber  ;  the  latter  a  room 
thirty-four  feet  long,  seventeen  wide,  and  nineteen  high,  faced 
with  red  granite  highly  polished,  single  slabs,  extending  from 
wall  to  wall  overhead,  forming  the  ceiling.  This  chamber  is 
iilmost  under  the  apex,  and  about  three  hundred  and  fifty  feet 
from  the  outer  entrance  ;  and  it  is  a  curious  fact  that  this  is  the 
only  pyramid  containing  two  such  large  apartments,  with  an 
ascending  galleiy  leading  thereto. 

None  but  those  who  have  full  command  of  themselves  should 
venture  into  this  dark,  prison-like  tomb.  No  doubt  many 
deaths  have  resulted  from  the  fear  produced  by  the  awful 
gloom  and  confined  atmosphere  of  this  dismal  palace  of  the 
dead.  One  lady  of  our  party  was  carried  out  almost  suffocated 
and  partially  paralyzed. 

Nothing  was  found  in  the  pyramid  when  opened  by  Caliph 
Mahmoud,  A.  D.  850,  but  the  empty,  lidless  sarcophagus  of  the 
once  mighty,  but  noAV  unknown,  builder  of  this  vast  sepulchral 
monument. 

With  the  aid  of  two  or  three  Arabs  you  can  ascend  to  the 
top  of  Cheops,  and  enjoy  one  of  tlie  grandest  views  on  earth. 
Beneath  your  feet  repose  the  dead  of  forty  centuries.  To  the 
north  you  have  the  meanderings  of  the  Nile  through  the  ever 
green  Delta  ;  to  the  west,  the  desert — the  great  African  desert 


48  BIBLE   LANDS. 

— the  very  synonym  of  utter  desolation ;  to  the  south  Mem- 
phis and  her  pyramids,  wliere  Joseph  rnled  the  land  under  liei- 
most  powerful  and  wisest  Pharaoh  ;  and  to  the  east  you  can 
see  the  little  island  of  Rodah,  where  it  is  said  Moses  was  found 
in  his  "  ark  of  bulrushes  ; "  and  beyond,  Cairo,  with  its  numer- 
ous domes  and  minarets ;  and  still  beyond,  the  citadel  where 
the  Mamelukes  were  massacred  by  order  of  Mohammed  All,. 
March  1,  1811. 

And  the  interest  of  this  panorama  is  heightened  by  the  asso- 
ciations it  awakens.  You  stand  upon  a  monument  whose  his- 
tory is  lost  in  mystery,  dating  back  at  least  to  the  patriarchal 
age ;  which  must  have  witnessed  the  conquest  of  the  country 
by  Darius,  Cambyses,  and  Alexander  ;  which  was  a  problem  to- 
Pythagoras,  Strabo,  and  Herodotus ;  on  which  the  Cleopatras, 
Ptolemies,  and  Csesars  must  have  gazed  with  amazement ;  and 
which  inspired  the  army  of  the  great  IS^apoleon  with  ardor 
■when  battling  beneath  its  shadow. 

Many  theories  have  been  advanced  touching  the  age  and 
object  of  the  pyramids.  Josephus  and  other  ancient  historians- 
were  of  the  opinion  that  some  of  them  were  built  by  the  He- 
brews during  their  oppression,  which  is  very  plausible,  as  sev- 
eral near  Memphis  are  composed  of  large  sun-dried  bi'ick  made 
without  straw. 

Another  theory  is  that  the  Great  Pyramid  was  constructed 
by  Joseph  when  governor  of  Egypt.  The  celebrated  archae- 
ologist, Col.  Howard  Yyse,  has  discovered  upon  some  of  the 
stones  of  this  pyramid  certain  hieroglj'phics  that  answer  to  tlie 
name  of  Shoofoo — rendered  by  Herodotus  Cheops,  and  Snphis 
by  Manetho,  but  which  is  in  reality  the  identical  name  of  Joseph 
the  Hebrew.  It  is,  therefore,  inferred  that  Joseph,  during  the 
long  famine,  when  he  gathered  the  people  into  the  cities,,  and 


LATEST  THEORIES.  49^ 

was  coinjielled  to  feed  and  find  them  employment,  engaged 
them  in  the  construction  of  this  grand  monument,  perliaps  for 
astronomical  purposes,  or  as  a  depository  for  valuable  records ;. 
and  that,  by  order  of  Pharaoh,  he  was  buried  in  it  at  his 
death,  and  when  his  people  returned  to  Canaan  they  carried 
his  remains  with  them,  which  will  account  for  the  empty 
sarcophagus,  and  the  pyramid  being  closed  again  alter  first, 
opened. 

It  is  also  a  singular  coincidence  that  the  description  given  by 
Herodotus  of  Cheops  answers  exactly  the  character  of  Joseph ;. 
who,  he  says,  closed  the  temples  of  the  Egyptians,  and  for- 
cibly employed  the  people  in  building  this  pyramid ;  and  that 
the  same  cartouch  found  here  above  the  king's  chamber,  con- 
taining the  name  of  Supliis,  has  been  discovered  in  Wady 
Magharah,  on  the  route  of  the  Israelites  through  the  wilder- 
ness of  Sinai. 

Josephus '  speaks  of  the  ancients  erecting  two  pillars  for  the 
preservation  of  the  early  history  of  the  world,  and  their  knowl- 
edge of  the  lieavenly  bodies ;  one  of  stone  in  Egypt,  which  may 
apply  to  this  pyramid ;  the  other  of  brick,  "  in  the  land  of 
Siriad,''  which  may  refer  to  the  Temple  of  Belus.  And  as. 
the  Pyramid  of  Cheops  was  originally  beautifully  cased  with 
marble  and  covered  with  hieroglyphics,  may  it  not  have  been' 
constructed  for  the  twofold  purpose  of  a  tomb  or  depository 
for  valuable  records,  and  also  as  an  historical  and  astronomical 
monument  of  the  wisdom  of  the  ancients,  their  knowledge  of 
the  heavenly  bodies,  and  their  discoveries  in  the  natural  sci- 
ences— so  in  case  the  world  should  be  destroyed  again  by  water 
or  fire  some  account  of  its  history  and  inventions  might  be 
preserved  ?     The  other  pyramids,  being  of  a  later  date,  were 

'  Antiquities,  i,  2. 


50  BIBLE   LANDS. 

probably  erected  in  imitation  of  this  one,  and  evidently  as 
tombs  of  royalty. 

But  the  most  curious  theory  is  that  advanced  by  Piazzi 
Smyth,  Professor  of  Astronomy  in  the  University  of  Edin- 
burgh, and  those  who  adopt  his  views.  From  certain  calcula- 
tion based  upon  a  granite  "  boss,"  or  projection  on  one  of  the 
stones  in  the  vestibule  of  the  king's  chamber,  which  they  regard 
as  a  standard  for  the  inch  and  cubit,  they  claim  that  this  jjyramid 
was  built  by  inspiration,  the  same  as  Solomon's  Temple  or 
Noah's  Ark,  under  the  direction  of  the  Great  Architect  of  the 
universe,  for  astronomical  purposes,  and  as  a  physical  revela- 
tion— to  determine  the  precession  of  the  equinoxes,  the  sun's 
mean  distance  from  the  earth,  the  cardinal  points  of  the  earth's 
astronomical  axis,  the  interval  between  its  erection  and  the 
second  coming  of  Christ,  and  many  other  mysteries  of  the  moral 
and  material  universe. 

A  symbolical  meaning  is  also  attached  to  almost  every  por- 
tion of  the  structure.  The  long,  narrow  gangway  by  which 
you  enter,  is  interpreted  to  represent  the  Jewish  dispensation  ; 
the  grand  gallery,  the  Christian  Church ;  the  king's  chamber, 
the  heavenly  world ;  and  the  sarcophagus,  or  coifer  therein, 
the  throne  of  the  Eternal.  It  is  also  claimed  that  the  "well" 
leading  down  to  the  base  of  the  pyramid  represents  the  way  to 
perdition;  the  souterrain  or  cavern  below,  hades  or  the  grave; 
the  inclining  wall,  the  impending  judgment  of  God;  and  the 
supposed  tomb  of  Cheops,  far  down  in  the  solid  rock,  hell,  or 
the  prison  of  the  damned.  All  which  we  regard  as  very 
apocryphal :  nothing  more  than  "  extravagant  nonsense."  If 
one  is  allowed  to  establish  his  own  standard  of  weights  and 
measurements,  he  can  prove  almost  anything  from  it;  and  this 
whole  argument  reminds  me  of  the  absurd   speculations   con- 


COLOSSAL    SPHINX. 


51 


ceming  Jacob's  pillow,  or  the  "  Stone  of  Destiny  "  in  the  coro- 
nation chair  of  England. 

Five  minutes'  walk  from  this  unsolved  problem  is  another 
equally  as  wonderful.     We  refer  to  the  colossal  Sphinx.     This  /^-^ 
enigma  of  history,  which  recent  discoveries  show  to  be  older  ^ 


TKE  SPHINX. 


than  the  pyramids,  has  the  head  of  a  man  and  the  body  of  a 
lion  in  a  recumbent  posture — a  combination  of  great  wisdom 
■and  strength. 

According  to  the  legend,  this  fabulous  monster  visited  differ- 
•ent  cities,  propounding  certain  riddles,  which  if  the  people 
failed  to  guess,  they  were  at  once  destroyed,  with  their  city. 
Finally  this  nondescript  came  to  Egypt  with  the  conundrum, 
Wliat  animal  is  it  that  walks  on  four  legs  in  the  morning,  on, 
two  at  noon,  and  three  at  night  ?  They  called  together  their 
seers,  and  the  answer  was  rrymi  /  who  in  his  infancy,  or  morn- 
ing of  life,  creeps  upon  his  hands  and  feet ;  in  his  meridian, 


L/' 


A 


02  BIBLE   LANDS. 

stands  erect ;  and  in  his  old  age,  or  evening  of  life,  leans  upon 
his  staff  for  support.  The  question  having  been  answered,  the 
Sphinx,  so  the  story  runs,  immediately  destroyed  itself,  or  was 
turned  into  stone,  as  it  now  appears. 

This  gigantic  idol,  the  local  deity  of  the  old  Egyptians,  is 
perhaps  the  largest  image  ever  worshiped.  The  body  measures 
one  hundred  and  forty  feet  long,  not  including  the  fore  paws, 
which  extended  about  fifty  feet  in  front,  and  between  which 
stood  the  altar,  from  which  the  smoke  of  incense  went  up  into 
its  huge  nostrils.  The  head,  including  the  helmet,  is  one  hun- 
dred and  two  feet  in  circumference,  and  the  body,  just  back  of 
the  neck,  forty  feet  in  diameter.  It  is  all  cut  out  of  one  block 
of  stone,  in  situ,  being  a  portion  of  the  native  limestone  rock 
that  here  crops  out  of  the  desert. 

The  features  are  purely  Egyptian,  and  the  red  paint  can  still 
be  seen  upon  the  face  and  neck.  AVhat  events  have  transpired 
under  those  sightless  eyes  which  look  out  so  pensively  and  wist- 
fully, as  if  they  had  some  great  secret  to  reveal !  Ah,  could 
those  thick  lips  speak,  what  volumes  they  would  relate !  What 
mysteries  they  would  unravel !  What  a  flood  of  light  they 
would  pour  upon  tbe  early  history  of  our  race !  Alas,  they 
are  sealed  forever!  Here  this  representative  of  royalty  has 
patiently  reclined  for  four  thousand  years,  watching  with  sleep- 
less vigilance  the  ashes  of  the  mighty  dead  reposing  beneath 
its  gaze.  One  cannot  but  feel  a  degree  of  reverence  for  this 
monster  idol  when  he  considers  its  great  antiquity ;  that  it  has 
witnessed  the  rise  and  fall  of  the  greatest  empires  of  earth,  is 
older  than  the  pyramids,  and  yet  reclines  upon  its  stony  couch 
to-day  as  it  did  before  a  verse  in  the  Bible  was  written  ;  when 
darkness  prevailed  over  the  land,  and  the  Nile,  at  its  base, 
poured  down  rivers  of  blood. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

MEMPHIS,   THE   NOPH   OF   SCRIPTURE. 

Royal  City  of  Osiris — Scene  of  the  Miracles  of  Moses — Statue  of  Rameses  II. — 
Necropolis  of  Egypt — Mummy  Pits — Victims  of  Divine  Vengeauce-r-Ful- 
fillment  of  Prophecy — Mausoleum  of  Apis  —  Grand  Temple  of  Serapis — 
Tomb  of  Till — luterestiii*;  Sculptures. 

SITUATED  on  the  western  bank  of  the  Nile,  a  few  miles  ^ 
south  of  the  Pyramids  of  Ghizeh,  is  Memphis,  the  Noph  of 
Scripture,  founded  by  Menes,  the  first  recorded  King  of  Egypt, 
and  for  a  thousand  years  the  capital  of  the  old  monarchy,  and 
the  most  magnificent  city  in  Egypt.  It  was  here  Joseph  served 
as  governor,  and  Pharaoh  reigned  in  the  days  of  Moses  and 
the  patriarchs ;  and  no  doubt  some  of  the  buildings  whose  ruins 
may  still  be  seen  in  this  vicinity  were  constructed  by  the  He- 
brews during  their  long  bondage.  The  embankments  that  once 
protected  the  city  from  the  inundations  of  the  river  have  ages 
ago  been  washed  away,  and  the  rich  alluvial  deposits  of  twenty 
centuries  have  well  nigh  obliterated  the  site  of  this  once  cele- 
brated place,  and  a  beautiful  grove  of  date-bearing  palm-trees 
now  wave  their  long,  feathery  branches  over  the  totnb  of  the 
city  of  Osiris.  Scarcely  a  vestige  remains  of  the  grand  tem- 
ples that  were  once  the  chief  glory  of  Memphis.  Some 
blocks  of  granite,  broken  columns,  mounds  of  sun-dried  brick,  ^ 
massive  foundations,  and  a  colossal  statue  of  Rameses  II.,  lying 
with  his  face  in  a  pool  of  water,  as  if  bemoaning  the  departure 
of  his  glory  and  the  fate  of   his  kingdom,  are  all  that  remain 

bv  which  the  place  can  now  be  identified. 

53 


54  BIBLE    LANDS. 

This  statue,  originally  about  fifty  feet  high,  was  one  of  two 
that  stood  in  front  of  the  great  gate-way  leading  to  the  grand 
temple  of  Phtah  or  Osiris.  An  amulet  is  suspended  from  the 
neck,  somewhat  like  the  breastplate  of  the  high-priest  among 
the  Jews,  and  the  name  of  Rameses  the  Great  may  still  be 
seen  engraved  upon  his  girdle,  and  on  the  scroll  which  he  holds 
in  his  hand.  The  face  is  well  preserved,  looks  youthful,  and 
by  many  is  considered  beautiful. 

A  life-size  figure  of  his  daughter  is  represented  standing  by 
his  side,  which  possesses  additional  interest  from  the  fact  that 
"^  tliis  is  probably  the  Pharaoh's  daughter  who  adopted  Moses ; 
and  his  son,  Menephtah,  who  succeeded  him  in  the  empire,  and 
whose  statue  may  be  seen  in  the  museum  at  Cairo,  is  supposed 
to  be  the  Pharaoh  of  the  Exodus  who  pursued  the  Israelites 
and  was  destroyed  with  the  Egy|)tians  in  the  Red  Sea. 

The  present  condition  of  Memphis  fnllills  almost  literally 
the  predictions  of  the  Jewish  prophets  concerning  her :  "  I  will 
destroy  the  idols  out  of  Noph ;  .  .  .  the  pomp  of  her  strength 
shall  cease ;  .  .  .  a  cloud  shall  cover  her,  for  Noph  shall  be 
waste  and  desolate,  without  an  inhabitant."  ' 

Directly  back  of  these  ruins — back  of  the  forest  of  palm- 
\  trees — and  about  four  miles  back  from  the  river,  you  strike 
the  great  Libyan  desert  and  the  Necropolis  of  Memphis.  The 
contrast  between  the  green  valley  of  the  Nile  and  the  bleak 
African  desert  is  like  that  of  life  and  death ;  making  it  an  ap- 
l>ropriate  sepulcher  for  the  myriads  that  repose  beneath  its 
shadowing  wings. 

This  vast  cemetery,  the  oldest  and    largest    in  the  world, 

\       extending  from  the  Pyramids  of  Ghizeh  on  the  north  to  those 

of  Dashur  on  the  south,  a  distance  of  perhaps  twenty  miles, 

*  Ezek.  XXX,  13-18;  Jer.  xlvi,  19. 


MUMMY    PITS.  00 

is  estimated  to  contain  at  least  twenty-five  million  human 
bodies,  besides  innumerable  ibises  and  embalmed  animals.  In 
strolling  through  this  metropolis  of  the  dead  one  is  shocked  at 
the  number  of  skulls  and  other  human  remains  that  lie  bleach- 
ing in  the  sun ;  often  the  head  or  feet  of  a  naummy  protrud- 
ing from  the  sand,  and  the  desert  around  strewn  with  arms  and 
legs,  hands  and  feet,  sometimes  whole  bodies,  still  wrapped  in 
their  winding  sheets,  calling  vividly  to  mind  Ezekiel's  vision 
of  dry  bones,  for  "  Behold,  there  were  very  many  .  .  .  and, 
lo,  they  were  very  dry,"  and  continually  prompting  the  in- 
quiry, "  Can  these  bones  live  ? "  and  the  answer,  "  O  Lord  God, 
thou  knowest." ' 


MUMMY    CASE. 


"We  entered  several  pits  that  appeared  to  be  the  burial-places 
for  the  lower  classes,  and  found  long  galleries  cut  in  the  lime- 
stone rock  that  underlies  the  desert,  filled  with  mummies  piled 
one  upon  another  six  and  eight  courses  deep,  like  cord-wood, 
all  carefully  embalmed,  and  looking  as  fresh  as  if  laid  but  yes- 
terday in  their  quiet  tombs ;  and  yet  these  countless  thousands 
were  the  men  and  women  who  lived  in  the  days  of  Abraham 
and  Joseph  and  Moses ! 

We  spent  hours  in  going  from  pit  to  pit,  wandering  through 
the  courts  of  death  between  walls  of  human  mummies,  some  beau- 
tifully encased,  with  their  arms  folded  across  their  breasts,  hold- 

'  Ezek.  xxxvii,  3. 


^ 


56  BIBLE   LANDS. 

ing  some  little  charm  or  idol  in  their  embrace,  j  ust  as  they 
were  laid  to  rest  by  loving  friends  three  or  four  thousand  years 
ago;  and,  what  is  most  revolting,  the  natives  are  using  these 
mummies  for  fuel,  and  fertilizing  their  fields  with  the  dust  and 
ashes  of  their  ancestors !  even  stripping  them  of  their  wind- 
ing-sheets, and  sending  cargoes  of  the  linen  wrappings  to  Eu- 
rope and  America  for  the  manufacture  of  paper.  Some  of  the 
linen  was  of  finest  texture,  over  five  hundred  threads  to  an  inch 
of  warp. 

For  scientific  purposes,  we  examined  many  of  these  remains, 
and  to  our  surprise  found  them  mostly  young  persons,  their 
heads  thickly  coated  with  straight  black  hair,  all  the  teeth 
sound,  their  bodies  well  proportioned  and  of  full  habit,  as  if 
they  had  died  suddenly.  They  also  appeared  to  have  been  em- 
balmed hastily — simply  wrapped  in  swathing  bands  and  dipped 
in  common  pitch  or  bitumen. 

As  it  was  here,  or  near  this,  that  Moses  wrought  his  miracles 
before  Pharaoli,  and  as  this  was  the  Necropolis  for  all  Egypt, 
may  not  some  of  these  have  been  the  victims  of  divine  wrath 
who  perished  on  that  eventful  night  when  the  destroying  angel 
swept  through  the  land,  cutting  off  "  the  first-born,"  the  flower 
and  hope  of  the  family,  in  every  Egyptian  household  ?  And 
may  not  Hosea  have  made  reference  to  this  visitation  when  he 
says,  "  Egypt  shall  gather  them  up ;  Memphis  shall  bury 
them  ? "  '     How  solemn  the  reflection  ! 

In  the  center  of  this  Necropolis  are  the  Pyramids  of  Sahara, 
the  royal  tombs  of  the  Memphite  kings,  hoary  with  age,  and 
looking  as  old  as  the  sand-hills  among  wliich  they  stand.  There 
are  eleven  in  the  group,  the  largest  of  which  is  curiously  built 
in  stages  or  terraces  diminishing  as  they  go  up,  and  is  claimed 

'  Hosea  ix,  6. 


MAUSOLEUM   OF   APIS.  57 


to  be  the  most  ancient  monument  in  the  world,  which  seems 
plausible,  as  Memphis  signifies  the  City  of  the  Pyramids,  or 
home  of  the  dead,  and  may  have  derived  its  name  from  this 
venerable  ruin. 

Ten  minutes'  walk  over  the  ridge  to  the  north  of  this  Pyra- 
mid brings  you  to  the  Serapeum  or  Mausoleum  of  Apis,  a  most 
uemarkable  ruin,  and  until  within 
a  few  years  buried  to  the  depth  of 
seventy  feet  beneath  the  ever-drift- 
ing sands.  Apis,  or  the  sacred  bull, 
was  regarded  as  the  incarnation  of 
Osiris,  the  god  of  the  Kile,  and 
greatest  divinity  in  Egypt.  Mem- 
phis was  the  seat  of  his  worship, 
and  the  Serapeum  his  place  of 
burial       Here   is   a   vast  temple 

twelve  hundred  feet  long,  excavated  in  the  solid  rock,  over 
which  once  stood  the  temple  of  Serapis,  where  the  sacred 
cubit  and  other  symbols  were  kept,  and  funeral  services  held — 
a  still  more  elegant  edifice,  now  entirely  gone,  as  is  also  the 
avenue  of  sphinxes  that  led  up  to  its  grand  portal.  Open- 
ing out  of  this  subterranean  tomb  to  the  right  and  left,  but 
never  directly  opposite  one  another,  are  long  rows  of  large 
vaulted  recesses  or  mortuary  chapels  hewn  also  out  of  the  native 
rock,  in  each  of  which  is  a  colossal  sarcophagus,  thirteen  feet 
long  by  eight  wide  and  eleven  high,  all  but  the  lid  cut  out  of 
a  solid  block  of  red,  gray,  or  black  granite,  polished  beautifully. 
An  idea  of  the  immense  size  of  these  sarcophagi  may  be  had, 
when  I  state  that  five  of  us  ascended  by  a  ladder  to  the  top  of 
one,  the  lid  of  which  was  partly  removed,  and  then  by  the  aid 
of  another  ladder  we  descended  into  the  interior,  and  could  stand 


58  BIBLE   LANDS. 

erect  in  it  and  walk  about  with  ease,  there  being  room  enough 
for  as  many  more.  Some  of  the  sarcophagi  bear  hieroglypliic 
inscriptions  by  which  their  date  may  be  determined,  and  the 
side  walls  of  the  chapels  are  covered  with  inscribed  tablets,  or 
ex  votos^  giving  full  details  of  the  age,  death,  and  burial  of  the 
Apis,  and  the  persons  present  on  the  occasion.  Ten  of  these 
sarcophagi  appeal*  never  to  have  been  used ;  they  are  in  the 
vaults  with  their  lids  lying  by  their  sides,  but  for  feome  cause 
have  never  been  occupied.  Here,  in  this  grand  Mausoleum, 
the  Apis  mummies  were  deposited ;  here  they  reposed,  not  in 
regal,  but  divine,  state ;  and  in  the  magnificent  temple  of  Ser- 
apis  the  sacred  bull  through  long  centuries  was  woi"shiped  with 
greater  pomp  tlian  any  other  god  in  Egypt ! 

A  little  to  the  northeast  of  the  Serapeum  is  the  tomb  of 
Tib,  one  of  the  oldest  and  best  preserved  in  Egypt ;  dating  back 
to  the  fifth  dynasty  of  the  old  empire,  at  least  four  thousand 
years,  and  yet  the  walls  are  as  plumb  and  straight  as  if  the 
work  of  yesterday,  "rih  was  a  priest  of  Memphis,  and  appears 
to  have  been  a  man  of  great  wealth.  No  description  of  ours 
can  do  justice  to  this  beautiful  tomb.  The  whole  interior  is 
covered  with  paintings  and  sculpture  in  bass-relief,  representing 
all  the  events  of  note  in  his  life,  and  all  the  customs  of  the  old 
Egyptians.  In  one  hall  Tih  is  pictured  with  his  wife  and  sons, 
overseeing  his  servants  at  work  on  his  farm.  In  the  foreground 
cattle  are  browsing  in  the  meadows,  oxen  plowing  in  the  fields, 
and  others  treading  out  the  grain.  In  the  distance  may  be  seen 
the  river,  with  boats  sailing,  men  fishing,  and  birds  of  all  kinds 
on  the  water  or  flying  through  the  air.  On  another  sculpture 
servants  may  be  seen  reaping  the  harvest  under  the  eye  of 
their  task-masters,  others  binding  up  the  sheaves,  and  others 
again  gathering  them  into  heaps  with  three-pronged  forks,  very 


TOMB   OF   TIH. 


6» 


much  after  the  present  style.  And  in  other  apartments  his 
numerous  friends  are  represented  bringing  their  offerings  of 
oxen,  fruits,  vegetables,  and  other  articles,  for  the  slnnivei'sary 
ceremonies  in  honor  of  the  dead.  All  the  figures  are  full  of 
life,  of  exquisite  workmanship,  and  the  coloring  remarkably 
fresli. 

Till  evidently  looked  upon  this  life  as  transitory,  and  the 
future  as  eternal.  His  farm  buildings,  where  lie  resided,  as  here 
shown,  though  elegantly  designed  and  richly  decorated,  are 
constructed  of  wood  and  otlier  perishable  materials ;  wliile  his 
tomb,  which  was  also  built  during  his  life-time,  is  constructed 
of  stone  in  the  most  substantial  manner,  as  if  designed  to 
last  forever.  It  is  also  a  noteworthy  fact  that  all  symbolical 
representations  of  the  resurrection  of  the  human  body,  and  the 
life  of  the  soul  in  the  great  future,  so  common  on  Egyptian 
monuments,  are  wanting  here,  and  are  never  found  on  tombs 
of  the  old  Empire  prior  to  the  settlement  of  the  Hebrews  in 
Egypt. 

There  are  man}'  other  temples  and  tombs  in  this  vicinity,  but 
they  are  mostly  rendered  inaccessible  by  the  sand  drifts  that 
for  so  many  ages  have  preserved  these  works  of  antiquity. 
Truly  ''  saitli  the  Lord,  ...  I  will  make  the  land  of  Egypt 
utterly  waste  and  desolate,  from  the  tower  of  Syene  even  unto 
the  border  of  Ethiopia."  ' 

'  Ezek.  xxix,  8-10. 


EGYPTIAN   FUNTIRAL. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THEBES,   THE   NO-AMON   OF    THE   BIBLE. 

Hundred-gated  Thebes — Without  Wall  or  Gates — Land  of  the  Winged  Globe — 
Grand  Temples  of  Karnak  and  Luxor — Similarity  to  the  Temple  of  Solomon — 
Egyptian  Idols — Historic  Sculpture — Medeenet  Haboo — The  Ramesium — Co- 
lossal Statue  of  RamesesII. — The  Vocal  Memnon — Tombs  of  the  Kings. 

rPHEBES,  the  No-Amon  of  the  Bible,  long  the  capital  of 
Upper  Egypt,  and  rival  of  Memphis  and  Nineveh,  was 
•situated  on  both  banks  of  the  Nile,  about  six  hundred  miles 
from  the  sea.  Its  early  history  is  involved  in  much  obscurity, 
there  being  no  reliable  records  preserved  beyond  the  eighteenth 
dynasty,  B.  C.  1500. 

Strabo,  Diodorus,  and  other  ancient  historians  speak  in  the 
most  glowing  terms  of  the  wealth,  power,  and  magnificence  of 
this  city,  and  Homer  has  immortalized  it  as  "  hundred-gated 
Thebes."  The  poet  must  have  had  reference  to  the  propylse, 
or  gates  of  her  numerous  temples  and  palaces,  as  recent  re- 
searches prove  conclusively  that  the  city  never  could  have  been 
inclosed  with  walls,  that  the  river  was  always  its  principal  de- 
fense; and,  what  is  remarkable,  the  Scriptures  clearly  state 
this  fact.  A  correct  rendering  of  the  description  of  this  city 
as  given  by  the  Prophet  Nahura,*  represents  it  as  situated  on 
the  river — that  is,  on  the  river  Nile — there  being  no  other 
river  in  Egypt — having  "  the  waters  round  about  it,"  .  .  . 
"  whose  ramparts  were  the  sea-like  river,  and  her  walls  the 
sea-like  river."     And  if  the  old  Grecian  bard  had  consulted 

'  Nahum  iii,  8. 
60 


GEAND   TE&IPLE    OF   KARNAK. 


61 


the  Bible,  lie  probably  would  not  have  been  guilty  of  the 
above  misnomer. 

A  large  portion  of  Thebes  was  built  on  an  island  in  the 
midst  of  the  river,  and  the  other  portions  were  surrounded  by 


RCISS    OF   LUXOR. 


-deep,  wide  canals,  which  may  still  be  traced,  so  that  the  place 
literally  was  "  among  the  rivers,"  and  of  great  strength. 

About  all  that  remains  of  this  once  populous  city,  east  of 
the  river,  are  the  world-renowned  ruins  of  her  grand  temples 
at  Karnak  and  Luxor — two  modem  villages  that  have  sprung 
up  under  the  shadow  of  these  unrivaled  edifices. 

The  temples  of  Thebes  were  stone  structures  of  the  most 
massive  workmanship,  but  the  city  proper  was  built  of  sun- 
dried  bricks,  and,  owing  to  the  annual  inundations  of  the  Nile, 
has  long  since  crumbled  to  dust,  and  is  now  buried  from  ten  to 
twenty  feet  beneath  the  surface  of  the  plain.     And  we  fear 


62 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


THEBAN  SPHINX. 


the  same  fate  awaits  ner  more  enduring  monuments,  as  the  bed 
of  the  river  ^and  whole  valley  of  the  Lower  Nile  are  gradually 
tilling  up  from  the  deposits  left  by  each  overflow ;  and  the 
water,  saturated  with  niter,  now  comes  up  every  season  several 
feet  in  her  temples,  and  is  slowly  but  surely  eating  away  their 
foundations,  and  in  time  must  utterly  destroy  the  last  vestige 
of  Egypt's  once  splendid  metropolis. 

The  great  Temple  of  Kar- 
nak,  dedicated  to  Amon,  the 
Egyptian  Jupiter,  and  presid- 
ing divinity  of  Thebes,  is  situ- 
ated about  half  a  mile  east  of 
the  river,  and  one  mile  and  a 
half  north  of  the  temple  at 
Lnxor,  the  two  having  origi- 
nally been  connected  by  an  avenue  of  colossal  statues  and 
ram-headed  sphinxes. 

Any  description  we  might  attempt  of  this,  the  grandest 
monumental  work  ever  executed  by  man,  must  fall  so  far 
short  of  the  reality  that  we  hesitate  even  to  approach  the 
subject.  To  describe  in  detail  a  single  column  of  this  edifice 
would  fill  a  volume.  And  yet  no  two  of  the  forest  of  columns 
tliat  adorn  this  immense  building  are  alike — the  sculpture, 
coloring,  and  inscriptions  on  each  being  different. 

The  temple  area  was  a  square  of  about  ninety  acres,  one 
third  of  which  was  covered  by  the  buildings  of  the  temple 
proper.  Leading  to  this  sacred  inclosure  were  twelve  principal 
gates  facing  the  four  cardinal  points,  three  upon  each  side,  one 
within  the  other  at  regular  distances,  and  connected  by  colon- 
nades or  avenues  of  sphinxes.  These  gate-ways  to  her  temples- 
are  among  the  grandest  remains  in  Egypt.     They  generally 


HALL   OF   COLUMNS.  63 

consist  of  two  lofty  pyramidal  towers  of  massive  masonry,  with 
the  pylon,  or  portal,  between  them.  Obelisks  and  colossal 
statues  usually  stood  on  either  side  of  the  entrance,  and  on  the 
stone  lintel  over  tlie  pylon,  cut  in  alto-relievo,  was  always  to 
be  seen  that  mysterious  symbol  of  divinity  and  eternity,  a  globe 
with  two  large,  outspread  wings.  May  not  Isaiah  refer  to  this 
figure  when  he  speaks  of  "  The  land  shadowing  with  wings,"  ' 
which  literally  means  the  land  of  the  winged  globe  ? 


WINGED   GLOBE. 


In  approaching  the  Karnak  temple  from  the  west,  you  first 
ascend  a  raised  platform  ;  passing  over  which,  under  the  gaze 
of  a  double  row  of  colossal  sphinxes  much  mutilated,  you 
come  to  the  outer  propylon — an  immense  gate-way  three  hun- 
dred and  seventN'  feet  front  by  fifty  deep,  and  one  hundred 
and  forty  feet  high — through  which  you  enter  a  court  about 
three  hundred  feet  square,  with  covered  corridors  along  the 
sides  and  the  remains  of  a  colonnade  down  the  center.  This 
brings  you  to  a  second  gate-way  almost  as  large  as  the  first, 
guarded  by  two  cyclopean  statues  of  Rameses  II.  Passing 
this  pylon,  the  lintel  of  which  is  one  stone  over  forty  feet  long, 
you  emerge  into  the  grand  hall  of  Sethi  I.,  father  of  liameses 
the  Great,  and  supposed  to  be  the  Pharaoh  Joseph  served  as 
governor.  This,  perhaps  the  grandest  hall  ever  constructed 
by  the  genius  of  man,  certainly  the  grandest  of  all  the  monu- 
ments in  Egypt,  is  three  hundred  and  twenty-nine  feet  long  by 
one  hundred  and    seventy  wide,  and  in  the  clear-story  eighty 

'  Isaiah  xviii,  1. 


64 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


feet  high.  The  stone  ceiling,  resting  on  stone  girders,  is  sup- 
ported by  one  hundred  and  thirty-four  immense  columns,  the 
largest  sixty-six  feet  high  without  the  base,  and  within  a  few 
inches  of  thirty-six  feet  in  circumference,  the  smallest  over 
forty-two  feet  high  and  twenty-eight  feet  in  circumference,  all 
beautifully  sculptured,  with  capitals  representing  the  full-blown 
lotus  and  papyrus.     The  effect  when  one  first  enters  this  gor- 


TEMPLE    OF    KARNAK. 


geous  hall  is  so  bewildering  that  you  involuntarily  exclaim, 
"Wonderful !   wonderful ! 

Continuing  through  the  "Hall  of  Columns,"  and  passing 
another  massive  gate-way,  near  which  stands  a  graceful  obelisk 
dedicated  to  Thothmes  I.,  you  enter  an  inner  court  surrounded 
by  a  peristyle  of  twenty-eight  giant  Osiride  pillars^  irepresent- 


EGYPTIAN   IDOLS.  65^ 

ing  Osiris,  with  arms  crossed  upon  liis  breast,  holding  in  one 
hand  the  knotted  scourge,  and  in  the  other  the  key  of  the 
Nile  or  symbol  of  life.  In  this  court  once  stood  two  red 
granite  obelisks  ninety-two  feet  high  and  eight  square — the 
largest  in  Egypt,  if  not  in  the  world.  One  lies  broken  on  the 
pavement,  shattered  to  fragments  apparently  by  lightning ;  the 
other  still  stands  erect,  as  if  defying  the  thunder-bolt  that  laid, 
its  comrade  in  the  dust. 

Passing  yet  another  pylon  and  two  smaller  obelisks,  you 
come  to  the  Sanctuary  itself,  within  which  was  the  "•Ploly  of 
Holies,"  the  abode  of  Anion.  This  is  the  oldest  and  most 
sacred  portion  of  the  temple,  belonging  to  the  twelfth 
dynasty,  B.  C.  2000  ;  but  owing  to  its  ruinous  condition  it 
affords  little  satisfaction  to  the  visitor.  Still  beyond  this  is 
another  court,  then  comes  the  columnar  edifice  of  Thothmes 
III.,  the  Hall  of  Ancestors,  and  man}'  smaller  chapels,  all  fast 
going  to  decay.  Bnt,  to  form  a  correct  i9ea  of  this  magnifi- 
cent temple,  you  must  wander  through  its  long  colonnades,  ex- 
plore its  mysterious  passages,  reconstruct  its  demolished  parts, 
replace  its  idols,  rekindle  the  fires  upon  its  altars,  re-people  its- 
courts  with  thousands  of  devout  worshipers,  study  the  religious- 
and  historic  scenes  pictured  upon  its  walls ;  finally,  ascend  to  its- 
highest  pinnacle  and  take  a  bird's-eye  view  of  the  whole  vast 
structure,  and  then,  but  not  till  then,  will  you  be  able  to  com- 
prehend the  magnitude  and  grandeur  of  the  great  Temple  of 
Karnak  !  AVe  have  been  thus  particular  in  describing  Karnak,. 
because  this  magnificent  edifice  was  erected  when  Joseph  ruled 
the  land ;  and  as  he  had  charge  of  all  internal  improvements 
Jacob's  favorite  son  may  have  been  the  architect  of  this,  the 
grandest  temple  in  the  world. 

This  main  temple  was  but  the  center  of  a  system  of  many- 


t)6  BIBLE    LANDS. 

fiinaller  ones,  dedicated  to  different  divinities.  In  one  of  them 
we  found  tlie  image  of  a  colossal  hawk,  the  symbol  of  Anion, 
and  of  Ra,  the  physical  sun.  The  reigning  king  was  con- 
sidered the  sun  of  Egj'pt,  and  regarded  as  the  offspring  of  the 
sun,  and  hence  was  called  Pharaoh,  from  "  Phra,"  the  sun. 
In  another  large  temple  the  only  idols  found  were  about  fifty 
cats ;  and  in  another,  the  floor  of  which  was  alabaster,  we  found 
nothing  but  a  huge  monkey  in  black  basalt,  or,  as  Darwin  would 
say,  man  in  one  of  liis  early  stages  of  development.  Unfort- 
unately, however,  for  this  development  theory,  all  the  speci- 
mens of  the  early  Egj'ptians  thus  far  discovered  show  a  much 
more  perfect  and  better-developed  race  than  the  present  gen- 
eration— that  they  are  physically  degenerating  rather  than  pro- 
gressing, and  without  the  aid  of  divine  grace  are  more  likely 
to  retrograde  to  monkeys  with  tails  than  ever  to  advance  to 
angels  with  wings  by  any  mere  process  of  evolution,  though 
continued  through  countless  ages. 

And  is  it  not  unaccountably  strange  that  a  people  capable  of 
building  such  wonderful  and  enduring  monuments  should  be 
so  superstitious  and  degraded  as  to  worship  such  deities  as 
birds,  cats,  monkeys,  and  the  like? 

As  Strabo  observed,  Thebes  had  many  temples,  but  we  omit 
details,  as  there  was  a  great  similarity  in  Egyptian  temples. 
There  was  also  a  striking  resemblance  in  them  to  the  Temple 
of  Solomon. 

They  all  had  their  sanctum  sanctoi'um,  or  most  holy  place, 
the  abode  of  the  deity  to  whom  the  temple  was  dedicated,  and 
into  which  not  even  the  high-priest  was  allowed  to  enter. 
This  was  located  in  the  center  or  at  one  end  of  the  sanctuary, 
which  was  overhung  with  rich  white  drapery,  like  the  taber- 
nacle of  the  Jews.     In  this  sanctuary  stood  the  altar  of  incense, 


KARNAK   COMPARED    WITH    SOLOMON'S   TEMPLE.        67 


where  the  priests  officiated,  and  here  was  kept  the  sacred  ark 
containing  the  golden  sistrmn,  or  emblem  of  the  deity.  This 
building,  which  stood  alone,  was  surrounded  by  many  small 
chapels,  dedicated  to  different  gods,  and  used  for  different  pur- 
poses. Then  came  the  outer  courts,  halls,  and  other  temples, 
the  votive  offerings  of  successive  kings  through  many  gen- 
erations, in  acknowledgment  of  mercies  received,  ^'ictories 
achieved,  or  some  great  event  in  their  reign ;  the  whole  being 
inclosed  with  strong  high  walls.  One  peculiar  feature  of 
Egyptian  temples  is,  the  largest  and  grandest  halls  are  the 
farthest  removed  from  the  sanctuary,  as  each  successive  Pha- 
raoh endeavored  to  outrival  his  predecessors. 

These  temples  are  all  profusely  decorated ;  the  ceilings  are 
often  of  azure  blue,  studded  with  golden  stars ;  and  every  wall 
and  column,  architrave  and  frieze,  statue  and  obelisk,  covered 
with  pictorial  representations  in  sculpt- 
ure or  painting  of  every  important 
event  in  the  history  of  their  nation  or 
career  of  their  kings.  So  we  have 
here  the  history  of  the  oldest  nation 
in  the  world,  beautifully  preserved  in 
bass-reliefs  and  hieroglj'phics,  so  legi- 
bly Avritten  that  both  the  learned  and 
illiterate  can  read  it  without  difficulty. 

Among  the  many  beautiful  historic 
scenes  here  presented  is  one  on  the 
outer  wall  of  the  grand  hall,  repre- 
senting the  conquest  of  Palestine  by 
Shishonk  I.,  the  Shishak  of  Scripture, 
who,  after  taking  Jerusalem  and  plun- 
dering the  temple,  returns  with  great 


BEHOBOAK. 


68  BIBLE   LANDS. 

treasures  and  many  prisoners ;  among  them,  with  a  rope  round 
fiis  neck,  and  his  arms  lashed  behind,  may  be  seen  Rehoboam, 
King  of  Judah,  the  son  and  successor  of  Solomon.  The  name 
of  Judah  Malek  on  the  shield,  and  the  purely  Jewish  features- 
of  the  prisoners,  especially  their  beards,  indicate  clearly  the 
country  and  people  this  sculpture  is  intended  to  represent. 

The  larger  portion  of  ancient  Thebes  probably  lay  east  of 
the  Nile,  and  though  the  name  applied  equally  to  both  districts 
that  portion  west  of  the  river  was  frequently  called  "  The  Lib- 
yan suburb,"  and  was  under  the  special  protection  of  Athor,. 
the  Egyptian  Yenus,  to  whom  the  Theban  Necropolis — where 
it  was  fancied  she  received  the  setting  sun  in  her  embrace — 
was  dedicated. 

At  the  base  of  the  Libyan  range  of  mountains,  west  of  the 
river,  and  about  three  miles  west  of  Luxor,  stands  the  temple 
Medeenet  Haboo — the  most  ancient  and  splendid  on  that  side 
of  the  river,  and  second  only  to  Karnak.  Much  of  it  is  in 
ruins ;  but  enough  remains  to  show  its  dimensions,  and  the 
artistic  skill  displayed  in  its  workmanship. 

This  temple  dates  back  to  Queen  Hatasoo,  daughter  of  Thoth- 
mes  L,  who  erected  it  and  tlie  two  large  obelisks  at  Karnak  in 
honor  of  her  father.  This  princess  is  supposed  by  many  to  be 
the  Pharaoh's  daughter  who  adopted  Moses,  and  would  have 
made  him  her  successor  to  the  throne  had  he  not  refused  to  be 
called  her  son  ;  but  in  the  sculptures  she  never  appears  in 
female  attire,  as  women  probably  were  not  allowed  to  reign 
in  Egypt,  and  her  sex  can  only  be  determined  by  the  feminine 
form  of  speech  in  her  ovals.  It  also  appears  that  her  brother 
and  successor,  Thothmes  IL,  in  most  instances  erased  the  name 
of  his  sister  from  her  cartouches,  and  substituted  his  own.  Tiio 
fraud,  however,  may  be  easily  defected,  as  her  name  on  some  of 


TEMPLE  OF  MEDEENET  HABOO.  71 

the  shields  can  still  be  traced,  and  on  the  Pharaonic  square  of 
others,  where  the  name  of  Thothmes  II.  has  been  inserted  on 
the  oval,  may  be  read,  "  SJie  built  this  temple,-'  etc.  Nothing 
could  be  more  elaborate  or  beautiful  than  some  of  the  scenes 
here  pictured,  and  the  preservation  of  the  coloring  after  so 
many  centuries  is  truly  wonderful.  This  is  partly  owing  to 
the  following  circumstance :  When  Theodosius,  Bishop  of 
Alexandria,  in  his  pious  but  mistaken  zeal,  issued  his  cele- 
brated edict,  A.  D.  391,  for  the  suppression  of  idolatry  through- 
out Egypt,  and  ordered  the  temples  to  be  divested  of  every* 
vestige  of  idolatrous  worship,  many  works  of  art  were  de- 
stroyed, and  it  is  painful  to  see  how,  with  pick  and  chisel, 
many  of  these  beautiful  temples  have  been  defaced.  Here, 
however,  the  bass-reliefs  were  so  deeply  cut  in  the  hard  granite 
that  instead  of  erasing  the  sculptures  they  merely  plastered  them 
over.  This  temple  was  afterward  converted  into  a  Christian 
church,  as  the  frescoing  clearly  proves,  and  occasionally  very 
ludicrous  scenes  are  met  with  where  the  stucco  has  partly^ 
fallen  off.  In  ono  of  the  halls  where  this  plastering  has  scaled 
off  may  be  seen  a  long  procession  of  priests  and  princes,  with 
Rameses  III.  at  their  head,  presenting  their  offerings  and 
burning  incense  before  Athor,  under  the  symbol  of  a  cow, 
and  just  above,  where  the  frescoing  still  adheres  to  the  wall, 
may  be  seen  St.  Peter  with  the  keys  and  crosier,  raising  his 
hand  as  if  in  the  act  of  pronouncing  a  benediction  on  the 
pagan  worshipers. 

From  some  battle  scenes  here  represented  it  would  appear 
that  among  the  old  Egyptians  the  barbarous  practice  prevailed 
of  cutting  out  the  tongues  of  the  enemy  slain,  and  disabling 
the  captured  by  cutting  off  their  right  hands.  In  one  picture 
three  thousand  live  hundred  and  thirty-five  tongues  and  three 


72 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


thousand  hands  are  presented  as  so  many  trophies,  for  which 
the  king  is  rewarding  the  victors.  Several  other  larger  heaps 
of  hands  and  tongues  remain  to  be  counted,  which  the  scribes 
are  carefuUy  doing  one  by  one  in  presence  of  his  majesty 
and  generals ;  the  captive  chiefs  standing  by  witnessing  the 
performance.  In  another  place  the  king  is  represented  as 
trampling  the  slain  beneath  his  feet,  and  putting  out  the 
eyes  of  the  captured,  or  dragging  them  behind  his  chariot. 

Some  of  the  domestic  and  social  scenes  here  pictured  are  no 
less  interesting;  and  any  one  observing  their  style  of  dress, 
table-ware,   musical  instruments,  and    the  furniture   of  their 


TABLE-WARE DISH    AND    VASE.' 

dwellings,  will  see  that  this  ancient  people  enjoyed  a  higher 
state  of  civilization  than  is  generally  conceded  them.  The 
ladies  appear  in  gloves,  with  flowing  flounces  on  their  dresses, 
carrying  fans  and  parasols  of  ostrich  feathers ;  some  wearing 
fancy  head-dresses,  others  bracelets  and  necklaces  of  gold  and 
precious  stones,  in  the  very  latest  style  of  jewelry  worn  in  Paris 
and  Kew  York.  In  their  private  apartments  may  be  seen  ricL 
sofas  and  chairs,  vases  of  porcelain  and  glass,  vessels  of  gold, 
silver,  and  bronze,  in  design  equal  to  any  thing  modern.  The 
finest  devices  found  among  Grecian  remains  may  be  seen  here 

*  The  inscription  on  the  vase  is  the  name  of  Menephta,  the  Pharaoh  of  the  Exodus. 


COLOiiSAL    STATUE.  73 

on  monuments  of  the  earliest  period,  and  were  evidently  bor- 
rovvetl  by  the  Greeks  from  the  Egyptians. 

In  some  respects  the  most  important  feature  of  this  temple, 
and  of  other  ruins  in  the  vicinity,  is  the 
use  of  the  arch  ;  the  origin  of  which  has  so 
long  been  a  matter  of  dispute,  but  is  gener- 
ally conceded  to  the  Romans.  Some  cav- 
ANciENT  EGYPTIAN  llers  havc  questioned  the  antiquity  of  cer- 
BRicK.  ^j^jjj  ruins  in   Palestine   on  account  of  the 

arch  being  found  among  the  remains ;  but  we  find  here  stone 
and  brick  arches,  pointed  and  circular,  dating  back  at  least  a 
thousand  years  before  Rome  was  founded,  and  there  can  be  no 
doubt  as  to  their  age,  as  every  brick  bears  the  stamp  and  name 
of  the  Pharaoh  during  whose  reign  it  was  made.  Mr.  Layard 
also,  in  his  explorations  at  Nimroud,  discovered  the  arch,  and 
arched  gate-ways  are  frequently  seen  on  the  oldest  Assyrian  bass- 
reliefs,  so  that  the  arches  under  the  temple  site  at  Jerusalem  are 
no  argument  against  the  antiquity  of  those  remains. 

Among  the  tombs  on  the  edge  of  the  desert,  and  about  one 
mile  north  of  Medeenet  Haboo,  stands  the  Ramesium  or  tem- 
ple of  Rameses  II.,  the  unrivaled  Memnomium  of  Strabo. 

In  point  of  architectural  symmetry  and  elegance  of  design 
this  temple  equals  any  other  in  Egypt.  But  many  of  its  beau- 
tiful columns  are  gone,  the  rich  coloring  on  the  walls  is  fast 
fading  out,  and  its  grand  propylon  is  nothing  but  a  heap  of 
rubbish. 

The  celebrity  of  this  temple  or  tomb  of  Rameses  II.  was  chiefly 
owing  to  the  colossal  statue  that  once  stood  in  the  outer  court 
on  the  left  of  the  main  entrance.  This  enormous  statue — the 
largest  in  Egypt — was  a  monolith  of  syenite  granite  gracefully 
proportioned,  and  is  supposed  to  have  weighed  in  its  rough  state 


74  BLBLE    LANDS. 

not  less  than  one  thousand  tons.  It  was  erected  about  B.  C. 
1320,  and  designed  to  represent  Rameses  the  Great  seated  on 
his  throne  in  a  quiet,  easy  attitude,  as  if  resting  from  his  con- 
quests and  enjoying  the  peace  his  arms  had  won.  The  statue 
measured  twenty-two  feet  four  inches  across  the  shoulders,  and 
when  entire  must  have  been  at  least  seventy-five  feet  high. 
But  some  powerful  hand  has  hurled  it  from  its  throne,  and  now 


THE   RAMESIUM. 


it  lies  broken  on  the  ground,  its  fragments  scattered  in  every 
direction.  Portions  of  it  are  in  almost  every  museum  of  Europe. 
In  looking  upon  these  gigantic  remains  one  cannot  but  won- 
der how,  without  the  aid  of  machinery  unknown  to  us,  such  a 
ponderous  body  could  be  transported  over  land  such  a  distance ; 
and  how  it  was  ever  raised  on  its  pedestal  after  leaving  the 
sculptor's  hands.  But  to  me  the  greater  wonder  is,  how,  before 
the  discovery  of  gunpowder,  such  a  solid  mass  of  such  hard 


COLOSSAL    STATUE. 


75 


material  could  be  broken  into  so  many  pieces  witbont  tbe  mark 
of  any  instrument  being  left  upon  its  polisbed  surface.  Some 
think  it  was  done  by  the  Persians ;  there  is  nothing,  however, 
to  indicate  it.  Others  attribute  its  destruction  to  an  earthquake, 
but  the  base  on  which  it  rested  is  still  in  situ,  and  furnishes  no 
evidence  of  ever  having  been  disturbed.  The  fragments  of 
this  colossus  lying  around  bear  some  marks  of  having  been 


THE   COLOSSI. 


scathed  by  lightning,  and  as  storms  accompanied  by  vivid  light- 
ning are  frequent  in  this  region,  and  granite  almost  a  non-con- 
ductor, is  it  not  more  than  probable  that  this  great  statue  of 
Egypt's  greatest  king  was  destroyed  by  a  thunder-bolt  from, 
heaven  ? 

The  prophecies  concerning  this  city,  the  "  No  "  of  Scripture, 
seem  to  imply  some  such  visitation.     "  Thus  saith  the  Lord 


76  BIBLE    LAISTDS. 

God,  I  will  also  destroy  tlie  idols,  .  .  .  and  will  execute  judg- 
ments in  No,  .  .  .  No  shall  be  rent  asunder."  * 

Towering  above  the  green  plain,  about  ten  minutes'  walk 
directly  east  of  the  Ramesium,  sitting  pensively  on  their  crum- 
bling thrones  as  if  grieving  over  their  departed  glory,  are  the 
renowned  Colossi  of  Amunoph  III.,  the  only  two  that  survive  a 
long  avenue  of  similar  statues  that  once  guarded  the  approach 
to  the  grand  temple  in  their  rear.  They  originally  were 
monoliths,  but  are  now  much  broken  and  weather-beaten,  look- 
ing like  old  men  who  have  outlived  their  generation  and  are 
quietly  awaiting  their  departure. 

That  a  correct  idea  may  be  had  of  the  immense  size  of  these 
statues,  we  give  the  dimensions  of  certain  parts :  across  the 
shoulders,  eighteen  feet  three  inches ;  the  leg,  from  the  knee 
to  the  sole  of  the  foot,  nineteen  feet  eight  inches;  the  foot 
itself,  ten  feet  six  inches  long ;  and  the  arm,  from  the  top  of 
the  shoulder  to  the  tip  of  the  fingers,  thirty-four  feet  three 
inches.  The  whole  height,  including  the  pedestal,  is  about 
seventy  feet.  Amunoph  is  represented  in  a  sitting  posture, 
his  wife  and  mother  standing  on  either  side  of  the  throne. 
The  latter  statues,  though  eighteen  feet  high,  look  very  small 
by  the  side  of  the  centrah figure — not  reaching  to  the  knees. 

The  statues  stand  about  fifty  feet  apart,  facing  the  east,  and 
the  one  on  the  north  is  the  famous  Vocal  Statue  of  Memnon, 
which  was  said  to  greet  his  mother  Aurora  every  morning  at 
sunrise  with  a  song  of  praise.  It  is  now  much  defaced  and  in 
no  musical  mood ;  at  least,  we  waited  long  in  vain  for  some 
soul-stirring  strain,  forgetting  that  it  only  gratified  the  curiosity 
of  distinguished  visitors,  and  such  only  at  sunrise — an  hour  we 
are  not  often  guilty  of  disturbing. 

1  Ezekiel  xxx,  13-16. 


THE    VOCAL    STATUE    OF   MEMNOJS. 


77 


If  the  statue  ever  emitted  any  musical  sounds,  thej  were 
probably  produced  bj  fine  wires,  invisible  from  the  ground, 
stretched  across  the  lap  from  hand  to  hand.  This  simple 
arrangement  would  produce  the  effect,  and  we  know  the 
Egyptians  of  that  period  had  in  use  stringed  instruments  con- 
structed on  this  principle,  and  must  have  been  familiar  with 
the  ^oHan  harp. 


TOMBS    OF   THE    KINGS. 


All  the  temples  west  of  the  river  were  located  on  the  edge 
of  the  desert,  above  the  inundations,  and  at  the  base  of  the 
Libyan  range.  Here,  as  at  Memphis,  the  whole  desert  for 
miles  around  is  one  vast  necropolis,  where  embalmed  millions 
wait  in  silence  the  voice  di^ane  that  shq^ll  call  them  to  life 
again. 

High  up  on  the  mountain  side,  back  of  these  mummy  pits. 


78  BIBLE   LANDS. 

at  the  Lead  of  a  wild,  deep,  tortuous  valley,  far  removed  from 
the  fertile  plain  and  all  signs  of  life,  under  the  shadow  of  over- 
hanging rocks  and  the  everlasting  hills,  are  the  tombs  of  the 
kings  of  Egypt. 

They  are  all  hewn  out  of  the  natural  rock,  some  of  them 
penetrating  the  mountain  to  a  great  depth,  containing  numer- 
ous apartments  beautifully  decorated  with  sculptures  and  paint- 
ings delineating  the  life  of  the  occupant,  the  coloring  looking 
as  bright  as  the  day  it  was  put  on. 

There  is  no  great  diificulty  in  finding  the  outer  entrance 
to  these  tombs,  but  it  is  next  to  impossible  to  discover  the 
vault  that  contains  the  mummy.  These  old  Pharaohs  seem 
to  have  had  a  dread  of  being  disturbed  in  their  sleep  of 
death.  All  their  ingenuity  has  been  exhausted  in  efforts  to 
conceal  their  place  of  sepulture.  No  lock  could  be  more 
complicated  than  the  entrance  to  some  of  these  vaults.  But 
we  must  forego  any  further  description  of  these  tombs  of 
royalty.  What  pomp  and  wealth,  what  power  and  glory, 
lie  buried  here !  Truly,  "  the  fashion  of  this  world  passeth 
away." 

Thebes  was  first  taken  by  the  Babylonians,  afterward  by  the 
Persians  under  Cambyses,  B.  C.  525,  who  destroyed  or  muti- 
lated many  of  her  monuments.  Still  later  it  was  conquered  by 
Alexander  the  Great,  and  finally,  after  a  three  years'  siege, 
almost  totally  destroyed  by  Ptolemy  Lathyrus,  B.  C.  81. 

It  was  this  last  invasion,  followed  by  the  removal  of  the  seat 
of  government,  first  to  Bnbastis  and  then  to  Alexandria,  that 
dealt  the  death-blow  to  the  capital  of  Upper  Egypt,  and  left 
these  grand  temples  of  her  gods  to  be  polluted  by  the  numer- 
ous bats,  jackals,  and  hyenas  that  now  nightly  hold  vigils  in 
their  courts. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

ISLAND   OF   PHIL^— LAST  SEAT  OF   IDOLATRY  IN   EGYPT. 

Assouan — Granite  Quarries  of  Syene — Mode  of  Moving  large  Stones — Cataracts 
of  the  Nile — Ancient  Ethiopia — Island  of  Philse — Last  Seat  of  Idolatry — 
Curious  Sculptures — Aboo  Simbel — Fulfillment  of  Prophecy. 

ASSOUAN",  the  frontier  city  of  Egypt,  situated  at  the  foot 
of  tlie  First  Cataract,  eiglit  hundred  miles  above  Alex- 
andria, will  conclude  our  sketches  on  the  land  of  the  Pharaohs. 
This  is  quite  a  trading-post  with  the  interior,  and  large  quanti- 
ties of  dates,  ivory,  ostrich  feathers,  gum  arable,  ebony  clubs — 
and,  we  suspect,  slaves — are  brouglit  across  the  desert,  or  down 
the  Nile,  and  reshipped  here  for  Cairo  and  other  points  below. 
The  Khedive  is  building  a  railroad  from  here  to  Khartoom,  in 
the  Soodan,  at  the  junction  of  the  Blue  and  White  Nile,  which 
will  greatly  increase  the  trade  of  Assouan.  To  see  the  cars  and 
hear  the  shrill  whistle  of  the  locomotive  off  in  this  remote  cor- 
ner of  the  earth  impresses  one  with  the  march  of  civilization, 
and  makes  him  feel  really  homesick.  The  railroad  from  Cairo 
up  the  river  is  now  within  three  hundred  and  fifty  miles  of 
here  ;  so  in  a  few  years  we  can  penetrate  Africa  by  steam. 

Directly  opposite  here  is  the  beautiful  island  of  Elephantine, 
covered  with  crumbling  ruins,  among  them  the  Nilometer 
mentioned  by  Strabo — the  oldest  of  which  any  traces  remain. 
Back  of  Assouan  about  one  mile,  you  come  to  tlie  granite 
quarries  of  Syene,  that  furnished  the  material  for  all  the  enor- 
mous statues  and  obelisks  we  find  in  Egypt.     One  huge  block 

ninety-five   feet  long  by  eleven  square,  partly  dressed,  from 

81 


32  BIBLE   LANDS. 

some  cause  still  lies  in  the  quarry,  never  having  been  removed, 
and  is  not  likely  soon  to  be  disturbed. 

A  wide,  solid  road-bed  was  constructed  from  the  quarries  to 
the  river,  about  one  mile,  over  which  these  ponderous  blocks 
of  granite  were  moved  on  sledges  or  skids  with  rollers  placed 
beneath  them,  by  direct  physical  force,  thousands  of  slaves  being 
employed  in  moving  a  single  stone.  Portions  of  this  roadway 
may  still  be  seen,  and  the  whole  process  truthfully  represented 
in  their  sculptures,  even  to  the  overseers  directing  the  work. 

The  brilliancy  of  the  stars  in  the  clear  atmosphere  and  cloud- 
less sky  of  this  region  is  truly  wonderful.  Yenus,  as  the  morn- 
ing star,  appears  like  a  miniature  sun,  emitting  almost  light 
enough  to  read  by ;  and  the  Southern  Cross — at  least  to  one 
who  never  saw  it  before — is  simply  magnificent.  The  Cataracts 
of  the  IS'ile  are  nothing  more  than  a  succession  of  rapids,  where 
the  river  forces  its  way  through  innumerable  rocks  and  small 
islands  that  obstruct  its  passage.  The  greatest  descent  in  any 
one  of  the  rapids  at  the  First  Cataract  is  from  six  to  eight  feet 
in  perhaps  two  hundred  yards.  There  must  have  been  at  one 
time,  either  here  or  at  Silsilis,  forty  miles  below,  a  much  greater 
fall,  as  the  water-line  and  alluvial  deposits  along  the  shore,  thirty 
to  forty  feet  above  the  highest  inundations  of  late  years,  clearly 
prove.  The  probability  is,  the  rocky  ledge  crossing  the  river 
at  this  point  or  below  has  been  swept  away,  and  the  whole  up- 
per valley  of  the  Nile  lowered  to  its  present  level. 

This  is  now,  and  always  has  been,  the  southern  boundary  of 
Egypt  proper.  True,  some  of  the  Pharaohs  extended  their 
dominions  far  south  of  this,  but  were  never  able  to  liold  the 
country,  and  in  turn  some  of  the  Ethiopian  kings  invaded  and 
conquered  Upper  Egypt ;  but  the  "  tower  of  Syene,"  *   that 

•  Ezek.  xxix,  10. 


ANCIENT  ETHIOPIA.  83 

forms  a  part  of  the  granite  barrier  tlirongh  which  the  Nile 
here  forces  its  way,  is  now,  as  in  tlie  days  of  Ezekiel,  the  nat- 
ural border  of  Egypt. 

All  the  territory  south  of  this  for  a  thousand  miles  is  known 
as  Xubia,  the  Ethiopia  of  the  Scriptures,  or  the  "country  of 
the  Cushites  ;"  the  inhabitants,  as  the  name  signifies,  being 
black  or  of  a  dark  complexion.  Egypt  is  repeatedly  called  in 
Scripture  "  the  land  of  Ham,"  but  the  other  sons  of  Noah  are 
not  mentioned  in  connection  with  any  particular  portion  of  the 
earth. 

Four  of  the  sons  of  Ham  are  also  named  as  the  progenitors 
of  four  great  nations :  Mizraim.  and  probably  his  father,  settled 
in  Egypt ;  Cusli,  to  the  south,  in  Ethiopia — the  Greek  name 
for  Cush  ;  Phut,  in  Libya,  to  the  west  of  Egypt,  from  whom 
the  Libyans  and  Moors  descended  ;  and  Canaan,  on  the  east 
and  north,  in  Syria  and  Palestine.  And,  what  is  singular  in  this 
connection,  we  find  all  these  names,  or  names  very  similar,  in 
the  hieroglyphics  on  many  of  the  monuments  of  Egypt.  And 
may  not  the  groups  of  four  different  complexioned  people,  red, 
brown,  black,  and  white,  representing  the  four  great  divisions  of 
the  human  race,  found  in  several  of  the  '•  tombs  of  the  kings  "  at 
Thebes,  refer  to  these  four  sons  of  Ham  and  their  descendants  ? 

The  scenery  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Lower  Cataract  is 
very  fine.  The  towering  cliffs  on  either  hand  appear  like  em- 
battled fortresses  commanding  the  river  at  every  point,  and  the 
great  blocks  of  red  and  black  granite  that  line  the  shores,  and 
rise  out  of  the  water  in  every  fantastic  shape,  look  like  so  many 
giants  stationed  here  to  guard  this  gate-way  to  the  interior  of 
Africa.  Many  of  these  rocks  are  covered  with  hieroglyphic* 
and  tablets  of  great  historical  value.  The  old  Egyptians  ap- 
pear to  have  left  their  mark  every-where  they  went,  and  made 
6 


84 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


a  written  record  of  almost  every  event  that  transpired.  Their 
temples  and  tombs  are  covered  with  inscriptions.  Every  brick 
bears  the  name  of  the  Pharaoh  under  whose  reign  it  was  made ;, 
and  upon  every  charm,  bracelet,  and  ring,  you  will  lind  some  de- 
vice. In  their  campaigns  the  name  of  every  soldier  is  written 
down,  the  cost  of  the  war,  the  amount  of  booty  in  gold,  horsea 


EXTERIOR    OF   THE   TEMPLE    OF   ISIS. 


and  cliariots  captured,  with  the  number  of  the  enemy  slain,, 
and  prisoners  taken.  In  their  sculpture  scribes  may  be  seen  in 
the  market-place  noting  down  the  articles  sold,  and  on  the  farm 
taking  an  account  of  all  the  products,  down  to  the  number  of 
eggs  laid  by  each  hen.  So,  here  upon  these  tablets,  we  not 
only  have  an  account  of  the  military  expeditions  to  the  Soodan, 
three  thousand  five  hundred  years  ago,  but  of  the  Pharaohs 


ISLAND   OF   PHIL^.  85 

who  worked  these  quarries,  and  where  ahnost  every  stone  was 
taken  to,  and  for  what  purpose  applied. 

At  the  head  of  the  rapids,  six  miles  above  Assouan,  is  the 
small  picturesque  island  of  Pliilae,  with  extensive  ruins  of  a 
temple  dedicated  to  Isis,  but  of  comparatively  modern  date. 
And  it  is  an  important  fact  that  in  point  of  age  the  higher  you 
ascend  the  Nile  the  more  modern  the  remains,  showing  clearly 
.that  Egyptian  civilization  began  in  the  Delta,  and  gradually  ex- 
tended upward,  or  to  the  south.  Some  of  the  ruins  here,  and 
those  at  Meroe,  the  highest  up  the  river,  belong  to  the  Chris- 
tian era. 

This  island  was  considered  very  sacred  by  the  early  Egyptians 
as  one  of  the  traditional  burial-places  of  Osiris,  their  principal 
deity.  It  was  believed  that  no  bird  would  fly  over  it,  nor  fish 
swim  near  it ;  and  no  one  was  allowed  to  approach  it  except 
when  the  priest  came  to  crown  the  reputed  tomb  of  Osii-is, 
whose  very  name  was  held  so  sacredly  that  only  the  priests 
were  permitted  to  utter  it. 

Though  there  is  nothing  grand  about  the  ruins  at  Philae,  the 
eifect  of  "  Pharaoh's  Bed,"  and  the  long  colonnade  and  lofty 
propylon  as  you  approach  the  place  by  water,  is  very  fine.  The 
temple  itself  is  neither  large  nor  symmetrical ;  but  some  of  the 
tablets  and  subjects  delineated  in  the  sculptures  are  both  inter- 
esting and  curious.  On  one  of  the  outer  chapels  is  either  the 
original  or  a  copy  of  the  inscription  found  on  the  famous 
Rosetta  stone.  Here,  however,  the  Greek  text  is  wanting, 
which  would  indicate  that  it  is  earlier  than  the  one  found  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Xile  by  the  French.  In  one  of  the  courts  we 
have  Julius  Caesar  worshiping  Isis,  and  in  another  his  corona- 
tion by  that  goddess,  beautifully  executed  and  richly  colored, 
showing  that  the  conquerors  and  foreign  rulers  of  Egypt  did 


86 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


not  attempt  to  abolish  her  religions  institutions.  Hence,  we 
iindthe  language  and  worship  of  the  ancient  Egyptians  retained 
by  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  and  the  names  of  Alexander  and 
the  Ptolemies  and  Caesars  inscribed  in  hieroglyphics  on  the 
temples  here  and  elsewhere. 

Among  other  curious  sculptures  in  one  of  the  chapels  con- 
nected with  this  temple,  we  have  a  scene  of  the  last  judgment. 
Osiris,  the  judge  of  the  dead,  is  represented  seated  on  his 
throne;  Thoth,  the  recording  angel,  stands  near  him  with  a 
tablet  in  his  hands,  on  which  all  the  deeds  of  the  deceased  are 
recorded ;  Horus  weighs  every  action  in  the  scales  of  justice  and 


mhjmv\^^  i 


KM 


THE   LAST   JUDGMENT. 


truth ;  and  as  the  souls  are  ushered  into  Amenti — the  region  of 
departed  spirits — the  judge  passes  sentence  upon  them,  and 
they  are  either  admitted  into  the  palace  of  Osiris,  their  state 
of  blessedness,  or  changed  into  some  bird  or  beast,  generally 
into  pigs,  and  sent  back  into  this  world  to  ''  root,  hog,  or  die." 
This  seems  to  have  been  their  idea  of  our  probationary  state, 
the  very  doctrine  of  a  second  probation  now  being  revived  and 
taught  by  some  new-light  divines,  which  is  nothing  more  than 
a  rehash  of  the  mummied  theology  of  the  old  Egyptians,  served 
up  by  sensational  preachers  as  a  dainty  dish  for  enlightened 
American  audiences. 


CURIOUS  SCULPTURE.  87 

It  would  appear  from  this  that  the  old  Egyptians  had  some 
vague  idea  of  a  future  state  ;  but  it  was  not  the  "  life  and  im- 
mortality brought  to  light  through  the  Gospel."  They  be- 
lieved in  the  doctrine  of  transmigration — that  when  the  soul 
left  the  body  it  entered  some  bird  or  animal,  and,  after  passing 
through  differeTit  stages  of  reward  or  punishment,  finally  re- 
sumed the  human  form. 

But  the  most  curious  sculpture  about  this  whole  temple  is 
in  a  little  chapel  on  the  terrace  at  the  head  of  the  staircase, 
where  Osiris  is  represented  in  his  mysterious  character  as  the 
manifestation  of  divinity  in  the  flesh  appearing  on  earth  for 
the  benetit  of  mankind,  but  is  opposed  in  his  mission  and 
finally  put  to  death  by  Typhon,  the  evil  genius  of  Egypt. 
Osiris  is  afterward  restored  to  life,  destroys  Typhon,  and  be- 
comes judge  of  the  dead  and  king  of  Hades.  The  dead  must 
all  appear  before  his  judgment-seat,  where  they  are  either 
absolved  from  sin  and  enter  a  state  of  felicity,  or  are  driven 
from  his  presence  as  brutes. 

There  is  a  singular  analogy  here  to  the  oflSce  and  mission  of 
Christ,  and  many  have  been  puzzled  to  know  how  the  Egyp- 
tians obtained  these  ideas  of  the  Saviour's  incarnation  and 
office.  To  me  the  case  is  very  plain.  Christianity  was  early 
introduced  into  Egypt.  It  extended  rapidly  np  the  Nile,  and 
in  the  fourth  century  became  the  established  religion  of  Egypt. 
Philae  was  the  last  seat  of  idolatry  in  the  Roman  Empire,  and 
from  an  ex  voto  in  this  very  chapel  we  learn  that  Isis  and 
Osiris  were  worshiped  here  as  late  as  A.  D.  453,  over  a  cent- 
ury after  idolatry  had  been  abolished  in  Egypt  by  an  imperial 
decree.  And  is  it  not  more  than  probable  that  the  Egyptian 
idolaters,  in  their  intercourse  with  Christians  during  this 
period,  obtained  some  correct  ideas  of  the  twofold  character 


88  BIBLE    LANDS. 

of  Christ  ?  And  how  very  natural  for  them,  as  they  saw  their 
own  religion  dying  out,  to  ajjpropriate  to  their  favorite  deity 
some  of  the  attributes  of  the  Christian's  Messiah. 

If  this  was  one  of  their  oldest  temples,  and  the  sculptures 
belonged  to  a  period  before  the  Exodus,  then  we  could  only 
account  for  these  illustrations  by  some  special  revelation  fore- 
shadowing the  coming  of  Christ.  But  being  comparatively  a 
modern  temple,  and  these  sculptures  belonging  probably  to  the 
third  or  fourth  centuries  of  our  era,  we  find  no  difficulty  in 
accounting  for  their  appearance  here. 

There  is  nothing  of  special  interest  above  Philae  until  you 
reach  the  great  rock-hewn  temple  of  Aboo-Simbel,  at  the  en- 
trance of  which  sit  the  finely  proportioned  colossal  figures  of 
Rameses  II.,  among  the  largest  and  decidedly  the  most  beauti- 
ful of  all  the  colossi  in  Egypt.  As  in  all  the  other  temples,  we 
find  here  some  valuable  historical  tablets  and  highly  finished 
sculptures,  but  being  excavated  in  the  mountain  side,  and  the 
entrance  half  choked  up  with  sand,  nothing  can  be  seen  with- 
out the  aid  of  candles  or  torches,  the  smoke  from  which  gives 
the  place  rather  a  gloomy  appearance. 

The  present  condition  of  Egypt  strikingly  fulfills  the  proph- 
ecies concerning  her,  and,  what  is  remarkable,  the  ruin  of  this 
nation  was  brought  about,  as  foretold,  by  internal  dissensions  : 
"  I  will  set  the  Egyptians  against  the  Egyptians  :  and  they 
shall  fight  every  one  against  his  brother,  .  .  .  city  against  city, 
and  kingdom  against  kingdom  ;  .  .  .  and  I  will ...  give  [them] 
over  into  the  hands  of  a  cruel  lord  :  and  a  fierce  king  shall  rule 
over  them,  saith  the  Lord."  "  It  shall  be  the  basest  of  the  king- 
doms ;  neither  shall  it  exalt  itself  any  more  above  the  nations  : 
.  .  .  and  there  shall  be  no  more  a  prince  of  the  land  of  Egypt." ' 

*  laaiah  xix,  2  ;  Ezekiel  xxix,  15  ;  xxx,  13. 


FULFILLMENT    OF    PROPHECY. 


89 


And  more  remarkable  still,  is  the  fulfillment  of  the  prophecy 
touching  the  reeds  that  once  abounded  along  her  water-courses 
the  papyrus  being  now  miknown  in  Egypt :  "  The  reeds  and 
flags  shall  wither  ,  .  .  the  paper-reeds  by  the  brooks  .  .  .  shall 
wither  .  .  .  and  be  no  more."  ' 

Thus,  in  the  literal  fulfillment  of  these  predictions,  as  well 
as  in  the  harmony  of  biblical  and  Egyptian  chronology,  and  in 
the  perfect  agreement  between  the  narratives  of  Scripture  and 
the  arts  and  productions,  manners  and  social  life,  of  this  ancient 
people,  we  have  beautifully  set  forth  the  truth  of  the  inspired 
record,  so  that  they  who  half  a  century  ago  sneered  at  the 
Bible  as  a  budget  of  fables,  errors,  and  contradictions,  now 
regard  it  as  the  infallible  word  and  wisdom  of  God. 

'  Isaiah  xix,  6,  T. 


LAMP   A.ND    STAND. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

ISRAEL'S  DEPARTURE   FROM   EGYPT — PASSAGE   OF  THE   RED 

SEA. 

Deliverance  of  the  Hebrews  from  Bondage — Traditional  Crossing-place — Location 
of  Rameses — Their  probable  Route — Topography  of  the  Country — Significance 
of  Names — Safe  Passage  of  the  Sea — Destruction  of  Pharaoh's  Army — Wells 
of  Moses — Journey  through  the  Wilderness — Petra. 

THE  Exodus,  which  terminated  the  patriarchal  dispensation 
and  from  which  we  are  to  date  Israel's  national  career, 
occurred,  according  to  our  received  chronology,  B.  C.  1491. 
And  the  traditional  site  of  their  passage  of  the  Red  Sea  is 
a  few  miles  south  of  where  the  new  ship  canal  enters  the  Gulf 
of  Suez. 

The  deliverance  of  the  Hebrews  from  their  long  and  severe 
bondage,  and  the  punisliment  of  the  Egyptians  by  the  mi- 
raculous interference  of  Providence,  constitute  an  important 
epoch  in  the  liistory  of  God's  people,  and  add  a  peculiar  inter- 
est to  the  scene  of  their  wonderful  deliverance.  Some,  who 
would  explain  away  the  miracle  entirely,  contend  tliat  they 
crossed  the  head  of  the  sea,  near  Suez  ;  but,  having  carefully 
examined  the  whole  ground,  we  are  persuaded  that  the  passage 
was  effected  ten  miles  south  of  there — from  Ras  Atakali  to  the 
Wells  of  Moses.  The  sea  at  this  point  is  about  eight  miles 
wide,  and  from  ten  to  forty  feet  deep.  The  crossing  at  Suez 
is  a  shallow  ford  on  the  great  caravan  route  to  Arabia  and 
Syria,  less  than  a  mile  wide,  where  there  is  really  no  sea  to 

divide,  and  where  it  would  be  utterly  impossible  to  engulf 
90 


THEIR  PLACE  OF  RENDEZVOUS. 


91 


an  army  like  Pharaoh's.  Or,  had  Moses  made  a  short  detour 
to  the  left,  he  could  have  avoided  the  sea  entirely,  and  there 
would  have  been  no  necessity  for  any  miracle,  nor  any  occasion 
for  the  consternation  that  prevailed  in  the  camp  of  Israel. 

Others  think  the  sea  at  one  time  extended  much  farther 
north  than  at  present,  but  existing  traces  of  the  ancient  canal. 


JfBCL 


RED   SEA. — PROBABLE   CROSSING-PLACE   BY   THE    ISRAELITES. 

probably  constructed  before  the  exodus,  and  enlarged  by 
Necho  II.  B.  C.  650,  disprove  this  theory.  Besides,  Marah 
could  not  have  been  reached  on  the  third  day  by  the  northern 
route ;  and  they  would  have  found  an  abundant  supply  of 
water  at  the  "Wells  of  Moses  the  first  day  after  their  passage ; 
yet  it  appears  they  were  three  days  in  coming  to  water  after 
crossing  the  sea.     The   only  difficulty  in   settling  this  ques- 


92  BIBLE    LANDS. 

tion  lies  in  locating  Rameses,  their  starting-point.  Robinson, 
Lepsius,  and  others  fix  it  on  the  railroad  near  the  desert, 
about  seventy-five  miles  uorth-east  of  Cairo  ;  but  more  recent 
•discoveries  at  Tel-el  Yahoodeh — "  the  Mounds  of  the  Jews  " — 
twenty  miles  north  of  Cairo,  and  in  sight  of  Heliopolis,  are  very 
strong  arguments  in  support  of  Rameses  being  there.  This 
was  in  "  the  land  of  Goshen,"  and  ''  the  very  best  of  the  land  " 
helonging  to  Pharaoh,  of  which  Rameses  appears  to  have  been 
the  capital  or  treasure  city,  and  where  Onias  in  after  years 
built  his  temple. 

Among  tlie  discoveries  here  made  were  the  ruins  of  a 
magnificent  palace,  paved  with  alabaster,  the  walls  of  encaustic 
bricks  beautifully  wrought,  many  of  them  bearing  hieroglyphic 
inscriptions,  and  the  oval  of  Rameses  II.  inlaid  with  glass. 
Rameses,  in  a  sitting  posture,  was  also  found  upon  the  sculpt- 
ures. These,  and  other  ruins  of  dwellings  and  villages  in  the 
neighborhood,  clearly  of  Jewish  origin,  would  indicate  that 
this  at  least  was  one  of  the  cities  of  the  Hebrews^  and  more 
likely  Rameses  than  any  other  place  named. 

It  is  very  clear  from  the  narrative  that  the  land  of  Goshen 
lay  east  of  the  Nile,  and  from  the  frequent  communications  be- 
tween Moses  and  the  court  of  Pharaoh,  the  rendezvous  of  the 
Israelites  must  have  been  near  to  Memphis,  the  capital.  From 
Josephus  we  learn  '  that  they  took  their  journey  by  Latopolis, 
where  Babylon  in  Egypt — now  Cairo — was  afterward  built  by 
the  Persians.  If,  then,  the  ruins  we  have  been  describing  are 
those  of  Rameses,  the  probability  is  the  Hebrews  first  came  to 
Latopolis,  where  they  obtained  from  the  Egyptians  the  costly 
gifts  in  gold,  silver,  and  raiment,  as  a  reward  for  their  long 
service,  and  then   journeyed  eastward  by  the  direct  caravan 

*  Antiquities,  ii,  15. 


PROBABLE    CROSSING-PLACE.  93 

Toad  to  Succotli,  and  next  to  "  Etliam,  on  the  edge  of  the  wil- 
derness." '  From  this  it  appears  they  did  not  strike  the  desert 
until  the  close  of  the  second  dav.  From  Robinson's  location 
of  Rameses  they  would  have  reached  it  within  a  few  hours. 
Here,  on  the  third  day  of  their  exodus,  they  were  commanded 
to  "turn  and  encamp  before  Pi-hahiroth;""  or,  more  properly, 
return  and  encamp  again  in  the  mouth  of  the  valley,  namely, 
Wady  Tawarik,  "  between  Migdol  and  the  sea,"  which  would 
be  their  third  camping-place,  their  next  being  "  over  against 
Baal-Zephon,  ...  by  the  sea."  Baal-Zephon  signifies  mount- 
ain, or  watch-tower,  of  the  north,  and  must  refer  to  Jebel 
Atakah,  the  most  northerly  mountain  in  Africa,  which,  in  the 
morning  sunlight,  beams  like  fire.  From  this  it  would  seem 
that  at  first  they  were  going  by  the  usual  route  from  Memphis 
to  Gaza  and  Damascus,  round  the  head  of  the  sea,  when  the 
Almighty,  for  the  purpose,  no  doubt,  of  displaying  his  power 
in  their  salvation,  directed  them  to  the  place  where  they  finally 
crossed. 

The  distance  through  "Wady  Tawarik  from  old  Cairo  is  a 
little  over  fifty  miles,  and  can  easily  be  traveled  in  three  days, 
though  from  the  pillar  of  tire  going  before  them  '*  by  night "  it 
would  appear  they  traveled  day  and  night.  There  is  a  station 
and  fountain  about  one  third  the  way,  still  called  by  the  natives 
the  Station  of  Moses,  that  would  answer  very  well  for  Succoth, 
where  they  pitched  their  tents  at  the  close  of  the  first  day's 
march.  Their  next  encampment  was  at  Etham,  about  eighteen 
miles  from  Succoth,  which  we  nmst  be  careful  not  to  confound 
with  Etham  east  of  the  sea.*  Here  God,  in  the  cloudy  pillar, 
directed  them  to  retrace  their  line  of  march,  and  changed  their 
course  abruptly  to  the   right   into  Wady   Tawarik,    between 

'  Exodus  xiii,  20.  *  Exodus  xiv,  2.  '  Numbers  xxxiii,  8. 


94  BIBLE    LANDS. 

Migdol,  perhaps  Atakah,  and  the  sea,  with  the  wilderness  of 
Till  in  their  rear  shutting  them  in,  and  catting  off  their  retreat. 

This  also  accords  with  Josephus,  who  says,  "  That  Pharaoh 
followed  the  Israelites  with  six  hundred  chariots,  fifty  thousand 
horsemen,  and  two  hundred  thousand  footmen,  all  armed ;  that 
the  Egyptians  drove  them  into  a  narrow  place,  shutting  them 
up  between  inaccessible  precipices ;  and  that  there  was  on  either 
side  of  them  a  ridge  of  impassable  mountains  terminating  at 
the  sea."  '  All  which  agrees  with  this  locality  and  the  in- 
spired account,  but  is  not  true  of  any  other  point. 

In  fact,  this  is  the  only  route  that  satisfies  all  the  conditions 
of  the  narrative,  which  is  further  established  by  the  topograph}' 
of  the  laud,  and  the  names  of  places  along  this  line.  Wady  el 
Tih,  through  which  thoy  would  naturally  pass,  is  still  known  as 
"The  Yalley  of  "Wandering;"  Jebel  Gharbun,  near  Etham, 
where  they  turned  back,  signifies  the  Mountain  of  Doubt ;  Je- 
bel Atakah,  that  cut  off  their  escape,  and  where  Jehovah  inter- 
posed in  their  behalf,  the  Mountain  of  Deliverance ;  and  even 
the  Gulf  at  this  point  appears  to  have  derived  its  name  from 
the  overthrow  of  Pharaoh  and  his  host,  as  Suez  literally  means 
Destruction. 

In  determining  this  question  it  should  be  remembered  that 
the  event  is  every-where  referred  to  in  the  Scripture  as  a  mi- 
raculous deliverance ;  that  the  narrative  expressly  states  that 
the  path  of  the  Israelites  was  "  through  the  midst — or,  more 
literally,  the  heart — of  the  sea ; "  that  "  the  floods  stood  upright 
as  an  heap,"  and  "the  waters  were  a  wall  on  their  right 
hand  and  on  their  left ; "  "  and  that  "  the  Egyptians  pursued 
them  into  the  midst  of  the  sea,"  where  the  Lord  destroyed 
them  all.     "  There  remained  not  so  much  as  one  of  them ;  the 

'  Antiquities,  ii,  15.  Exodus  xiv,  22,  28. 


PROBABLE    CROSSLNG-PLACE. 


95 


depths  covered  them,  thej  sank  to  the  bottom  as  a  stone,  they 
sank  as  lead  in  the  mighty  waters." '  All  which  impHes  a 
wide,  deep  sea,  and  is  no  way  applicable  to  the  narrow,  shallow 
ford  at  Suez,  where  really  there  was  no  sea  to  divide,  no 
mountains  to  shut  the  Israelites  in,  no  occasion  for  any  divine 
interposition ;  and  where  it  would  be  impossible  to  overwhelm 
and  destroy  an  army  like  Pharaoh's  "  in  the  depths  of  the  sea." 
They  who  would  explain  away  the  miracle  contend  that  the 


WELLS    OF    MOSES. 


wind  blew  back  the  waters  from  the  head  of  the  gulf,  which 
seems  very  absurd  to  one  standing  upon  the  spot.  "  A  strong 
east  wind""  would  never  drive  the  water  out  of  the  bay  of 
Suez,  but  at  Ras  Atakah  would  force  the  tide  back  into  the 
sea,  and  aid  in  opening  a  passage  from  east  to  west,  literally 
piling  up  the  waters  in  "  an  heap  "  around  Suez.  All  this  ren- 
ders the  traditional  site  the  probable  crossing-place ;  and  Ayun 


'  Exodus  xiv.  10. 


*  Exodus  xiv,  21. 


96  BIBLE   LANDS. 

Musa,  on  the  Asiatic  side,  more  than  likely  the  spot  where 
Miriam  struck  her  timbrels,  and  all  Israel  praised  the  Lord 
who  had  triumphed  so  gloriously  in  the  overthrow  of  Pharaoh 
and  his  chariots  in  the  sea.^ 

Ayun  Musa,  or  the  Wells  of  Moses,  are  simply  several  fount- 
ains of  brackish  water  bubbling  up  through  the  hot  sands,  sur- 
rounded with  a  grove  of  palm,  tamarisk,  and  other  trees,  form- 
ing a  cool  oasis  in  the  desert  about  twelve  miles  south  of  Suez^ 
and  probably  marking  the  first  encampment  of  the  Israelites  in 
the  "  Wilderness  of  Shur,"  east  of  the  Red  Sea. 

All  travel  through  the  desert  is  on  the  camel.  This  animal 
has  great  power  of  endurance,  and  will  go  from  six  to  seven 
days,  if  necessary,  without  eating  or  drinking.  Wherever  you 
find  the  Arab  you  find  the  camel,  and  these  children  of  the 
desert  consider  it  a  very  beautiful  animal.  If  you  want  ta 
compliment  an  Arab  lady,  just  tell  her  she  is  as  beautiful  as  a 
camel,  and  you  will  see  her  dark  skin  tinge  at  once  with  a  blush. 
The  camel  is  purely  a  domestic  beast,  not  being  found  in  a  wild 
state  anywhere  on  the  globe.  There  are  wild  horses,  wild  oxen,, 
wild  goats,  and  wild  sheep,  but  nowhere  is  the  camel  found  in  a 
wild  state.  The  only  difference  between  the  dromedary  and 
camel  is  the  difference  between  a  riding-horse  and  a  work-horse. 
The  dromedary  is  the  graceful,  well-formed  camel,  and  is  kept 
only  for  the  saddle.  They  both  have  the  same  peculiar  humj,> 
or  elevation  on  their  backs,  a  fatty  substance  on  which  they^ 
subsist  during  long  journeys.  The  camel  is  the  "ship  of  the- 
desert,"  and  is  used  almost  exclusively  for  transportation  purposes. 
Without  this  animal  the  desert  would  be  as  impassable  as  the 
sea  without  ships. 

The  caravans  usually  start  from  the  Wells  of  Moses  for  the: 

'  Exodus  XV,  1-21. 


CONVENT   OF    ST.   CATHARINE. 


99 


peninsula  of  Sinai,  and  in  from  six  to  eight  days,  by  way  of 
Wady  Feiran,  you  are  at  the  old  Convent  of  St.  Catharine, 
over  five  thousand  feet  above  the  sea,  and  at  the  base  of  Kas 
Sufsafeh,  a  spur  of  Jebel  Musa,  the  traditional  Mount  Sinai, 
vrhich  meets  all  the  conditions  of  the  text  better  than  any  other 


THK    CON^l-.NT    0¥    ST.    CATHAKINK. 


peak  of  the  Horeb  range.  The  legal  mountain  towers  two 
thousand  feet  above  the  convent,  and  seven  thousand  four 
hundred  and  fifty  feet  above  the  sea  at  Tor. 

The  plain  of  Er  Kaliah,  where  the  Israelites  encamped  for 
about  eleven  months,  lies  to  the  north  of  Jebel  Musa,  and  is 
eufticiently  large  to  have  accommodated  the  hosts  of  Israel, 


100 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


and  to  afford  them  a  grand  view  of  that  sublime  display  of 
Jehovah's  majesty  and  power  when  "  He  came  down  in  sight 
of  all  the  people,"  '  and  from  the  flaming  crest  of  this  mount- 
ain— that  still  bears  the  marks  of  having  been  scathed  with 
lightning — delivered  his  own  law,  containing  the  moral  code  of 
the  universe,  to  his  own  chosen  Israel. 


INSCRIBED    ROCKS WADT    MUKATTEB. 


The  journey  from  here  to  Palestine,  by  the  way  of  Akabah 
and  Petra,  generally  takes  from  two  to  three  weeks,  frequently 
crossing  and  sometimes  following  the  supposed  track  of  the 
Israelites  through  the  Desert,  where  their  route  may  be  traced 
in  places  by  the  ash-beds  of  their  camp-fires,  and  the  inscribed 
rocks  that  mark  their  line  of  march.  And  we  here  learn  the 
full  force  of  that  expression,  "  They  went  out  into  the  waste 

'  Exodus  xix,  11. 


PETRA.  101 

howling  wilderness."  *  Many  rocks  crop  out  of  the  Desert, 
round  which  the  sand  gathers  in  hillocks,  and  the  wind  blow- 
ing among  these  sand-hills  often  produces  the  most  mournful 
sounds,  sometimes  resembling  the  wailing  of  mourners  for  the 
dead,  and  at  other  times  the  howling  of  a  pack  of  wolves  thirst- 
ing for  your  blood. 

Akabah,  three  days'  journey  from  Sinai,  is  a  wretched  Arab 
village  at  the  head  of  the  eastern  arm  of  the  Red  Sea,  possess- 
ing no  interest  whatever,  further  than  marking  the  route  of  the 
Israelites  in  their  wanderings,  and  the  site  of  ancient  Ezion- 
geber,  the  extreme  southern  limit  of  the  kingdom  of  Israel 
under  Solomon,  and  where  that  king  built  his  fleets,  and  landed 
his  gold  from  Ophir,  three  thousand  years  ago." 

An  interesting  discovery  has  lately  been  made  by  Captain 
Burton,  who  was  sent  out  two  years  ago  by  the  ex-Khedive, 
to  explore  the  country  east  of  the  Gulf  of  Akabah,  Landing 
in  Arabia,  Burton  forced  his  way  a  few  miles  into  the  interior, 
and  recovered  what  he  considers  the  old  cities  of  the  Midian- 
ites,  deserted  and  in  ruins.  He  also  found  ancient  gold  mines 
once  extensively  worked,  which  he  supposes  to  be  the  long-lost 
mines  of  Ophir,  and  during  the  last  year  has  taken  out  a 
colony  from  Egypt  to  re-occupy  these  cities  and  work  the  old 
gold  mines  of  Solomon. 

Three  days'  hard  traveling  from  Akabah  through  Wady  Ara- 
bah,  twice  traversed  by  the  Israelites  during  the  Exodus,  brings 
us  to  Petra,  the  long-lost  capital  of  Arabia  Petraea,  or  ancient 
Edom,  the  Idumea  of  the  Greeks — very  remarkable  ruins — 
nothing  like  them  anywhere.  Petra  was  at  first  inhabited  by 
the  Horites,  or  "  Dwellers  in  Caves,"  and  it  would  appear  that  its 
inhabitants  have  always  lived  in  caves;  that  after  the  conquest  of 

'  Deuteronomj'  xxxii,  10.  "1  Kings  ix,  26-28. 


102 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


the  place  by  the  Greeks  and  Koman8,the  natural  rock  dwellings 
of  the  aborigines  were  only  enlarged  and  beautified,  so  that  Petra 
has  always  been  what  its  name  imports,  "  A  city  in  the  clefts  of 
the  rocks,"  almost  every  house  in  it  being  hewn  out  of  the 


GATK-WAY    TO    PETRA. 


solid  rock— a  variegated  sandstone  in  which  the  crimson,  orange, 
blue,  and  other  natural  tints  blend  so  richly  as  to  give  to  the 
palaces,  temples,  theaters,  and  tombs,  the  appearance  of  being 
beautifully  frescoed. 


EL    K.UZNEH,  PETRA. 


PETRA.  105 

This  city  is  mentioned  by  Pliny,  Strabo,  Josephus,  and  oth- 
ers ;  but  about  the  sixth  century  of  our  era  it  disappeared  from 
liistory,  and  for  twelve  hundred  years  its  very  site  was  unknown, 
and  only  within  the  present  century  recovered  by  Burckhardt. 
It  is  situated  in  a  wild,  rugged  region,  almost  inaccessible,  with 
many  deep  ravines,  the  rocks  appearing  to  have  been  rent 
asunder  by  earthquakes,  and  standing  two  or  three  hundred 
feet  high,  almost  perpendicular,  and  in  places  not  moi'e  than 
ten  or  twenty  feet  apart,  so  that  the  city  was  surrounded  with 
natural  walls,  strong  gates  closing  the  narrow  defiles  through 
which  only  access  could  be  had. 

In  entering  the  city  by  the  chasm  of  the  Sik,  which  is  over 
a  mile  long,  you  first  pass  many  beautiful  tombs  with  niches 
cut  in  the  face  of  the  cliff  for  statues  and  inscribed  tablets,  then 
under  a  picturesque  arch  spanning  the  ravine,  supported  by  two 
Corinthian  columns,  called  the  Gate-way  ;  when  suddenly  El 
Kuzneh,  the  Treasury,  rises  like  a  vision  before  you.  The  en- 
tire edifice,  which  is  one  hundred  feet  front  by  one  hundred 
and  fifty  high,  (except  two  colunms  of  the  portico,  one  of 
which  has  fallen,)  is  cut  out  of  the  rose-tinted  rock,  looking 
more  like  an  apparition  than  any  thing  real. 

This  is  the  gem  of  Petra's  monuments,  and  yet  nothing  is 
kno\^'n  of  its  history  or  object.  It  is  called  the  Treasury,  from 
a  legend  that  it  was  built  by  a  certain  king  as  a  depository  for 
his  valuables,  and  the  Arabs  believe  that  the  inaccessible  urn 
high  up  on  its  pediment  still  contains  much  gold  and  many 
rare  jewels. 

There  are  other  edifices  in  Petra  much  larger  than  the  Treas- 
ury. The  amphitheater  has  an  arena  one  hundred  and  twenty 
feet  in  diameter,  with  thirty-three  tiers  of  seats  and  many  pri- 
vate boxes,  capable  of  seating  an  audience  of  three  tliousand  or 


106  BIBLE   LANDS. 

more — all  cut  out  of  the  living  rock.  Another  monument, 
known  as  Ed  Deir,  the  Convent,  measuring  one  hundred  and 
fifty  feet  front  and  two  hundred  and  forty  high,  its  facade  or- 
namented with  two  rows  of  eight  Corinthian  columns  one  above 
the  other,  the  lower  tier  of  columns  fifty  feet  high  and  seven 
feet  in  diameter,  is  a  vast  monolith — the  entire  edifice  being 
hewn  out  of  one  massive  block  of  stone.  But  no  description 
of  ours  can  do  justice  to  these  unique  remains  of  a  past  civili- 
zation.    They  must  be  seen  to  be  appreciated. 

In  the  present  desolate  condition  of  Petra  we  see  how  liter- 
ally the  judgments  of  God  denounced  against  it  have  been 
executed.  "  O  thou  that  dwellest  in  the  clefts  of  the  rocks, 
that  holdest  the  height  of  the  hill ;  though  thou  shouldst  make 
thy  nest  as  high  as  the  eagle,  I  will  bring  thee  down  from 
thence,  saith  the  Lord.  Edom  shall  be  a  desolation  ;  every 
one  that  goeth  by  it  shall  be  astonished  ;  ...  no  man  shall 
abide  there,  neither  shall  a  son  of  man  dwell  in  it." '  Its 
ancient  inhabitants  have  all  been  cut  off,  and  so  far  as  known, 
not  an  Edomite  to-day  is  to  be  found  in  all  the  world. 

Near  this  Aaron  died,  and  in  a  rock-hewn  tomb  covered 
with  a  welly,  on  tlie  highest  summit  of  Mount  Hor,  the  brother 
of  the  great  lawgiver  sleeps  his  last  long  sleep."* 

The  usual  route  from  here  to  Palestine  is  across  the  desert 
to  Beer-sheba  by  way  of  Ain  el  Weibeh,  a  fountain  in  Wady 
Jeib,  the  supposed  site  of  Kadesh-barnea,  and  is,  probably, 
Meribah-Kadesh,  where  Miriam  died,  and  Moses  committed 
the  offense  for  which  he  was  excluded  from  the  land  he  trav- 
eled so  far  to  possess. 

'  Jer.  xlix,  16-18.  «  Num.  xx,  28. 


PART  II. 
THE  LAND  OF  ISRAEL 

"In  that  same  day  the  Lord  made  a  covenant  with  Abram,  saying,  Unto  thy 
seed  have  I  given  this  land,  from  the  river  of  Egypt  unto  the  great  river,  the 
river  Euphrates."  Gen.  xv,  18. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE   PROMISED   LAND. 

God's  Covenant  with  the  Patriarchs — Jacob's  Name  changed  to  Israel — Land  of 
Israel  under  Solomon — Primitive  Inhabitants  of  Canaan — Character  of  the 
Country — Present  Condition  of  Palestine,  Moral,  Social,  Political — Turkish 
Rule — Future  Prospects. 

AF  Enoch  it  is  said,  that  he  "walked  with  God,"  and  of 
^  Abraham  that  he  was  the  "  friend  of  God,"  but  of  Jacob 
the  honorable  mention  is  made,  he  "  prevailed  with  God,"  and 
from  this  circumstance  his  name  was  changed  to  Israel,  a  name 
by  which  his  descendants  have  ever  since  been  known.  And 
the  covenant  God  first  made  with  Abram  before  he  left  "  Ur 
of  the  Chaldees,"  ^  that  he  should  become  "  a  great  nation  "  in 
whom  "all  the  families  of  the  earth  should  be  blessed,"  was 
afterward  renewed  with  Jacob  when  the  Almighty  appeared  to 
him,  first  at  Peniel,  then  at  Bethel,  and  said  unto  him,  "  Thy 
name  shall  not  be  called  any  more  Jacob,  but  Israel  shall  be  thy 
name,  and  the  land  which  I  gave  Abraham  and  Isaac,  to  thee 
will  I  give  it,  and  to  thy  seed  after  thee  will  I  give  the 
land."^ 

The  twelve  sons  of  this  illustrious  man  were  the  twelve  pa- 
triarchs and  progenitors  of  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel,  God's 
chosen  people,  whose  history  by  many  centuries  is  the  oldest,  and, 
in  fact,  the  only  reliable  history  of  our  world  and  race.  Blot 
out  Jewish  history,  and  w^hat  would  we  know  of  the  origin  of 
man  or  the  world,  of  God  or  the  future? 

'Genesis  xii,  1.  "Genesis  xxxv,  10-12. 

109 


110  BIBLE   LANDS. 

Under  David  and  Solomon  "  the  land  of  Israel "  became 
one  of  the  largest,  most  powerful,  and  wealthy  kingdoms  of  tlie 
world,  extending  north  and  south  from  Ezion-geber  on  the  Red 
Sea,  "  unto  the  entering  in  of  Ilamath  "  '  in  Northern  Syria,  and 
east  and  west  "from  the  river  of  Egypt,  unto  the  great  river, 
the  river  Euphrates,"*  covering  an  area  of  two  hundred  thou- 
sand square  miles,  equal  to  some  of  the  largest  kingdoms  of 
Europe ;  and  in  point  of  riches  and  wisdom  Solomon  is  said 
to  have  surpassed  "  all  the  kings  of  the  earth ; " '  and  all 
neighboring  nations  acknowledged  his  power,  and  contributed 
to  his  wealth  by  sending  him  every  year  costly  presents  in 
gold,  silver,  and  other  articles.  So  great  was  his  affluence  that 
"  all  his  drinking- vessels  were  of  pure  gold ;  none  were  silver ;  it 
was  not  any  thing  accounted  of  in  the  days  of  Solomon."  *  When 
the  Queen  of  Sheba  visited  him,  and  beheld  the  splendor  of 
his  court,  "  there  was  no  more  spirit  in  her,"  and  she  exclaimed, 
"  The  half  of  thy  greatness  and  wisdom  was  not  told  me. 
Blessed  be  the  Lord  thy  God,  who  delighteth  in  thee,  to  set 
thee  on  the  throne  of  Israel."  *  After  the  death  of  Solomon 
this  magnificent  kingdom  began  to  decline,  and  in  a  few  years 
the  boundaries  of  the  Holy  Land  were  contracted  to  the  limited 
territory,  "  from  Dan  to  Beer-sheba."  ®  In  modern  times  the 
Land  of  Promise  is  better  known  as  Palestine,  or  Palestina,  the 
Greek  form  of  Philistine,  a  once  powerful  nation  who  occupied 
the  rich  plain  of  Philistia,  between  the  Judean  mountains  and 
the  Mediterranean  Sea,  and  have  stamped  their  name  on  the 
whole  of  the  land  of  Israel. 

Palestine  was  first  inhabited  by  the  Hittites,  Amorites,  Jebu- 
sites,   and  other  Canaanitish  tribes,  being  all  descendants  of 

'  Judges  iii,  3;   1  Kings  ix,  26.       ^  Genesis  xv,  18.       "  2  Chronicles  ix,  22,  24. 
*  2  Clironicles  ix,  20.  ^  1  Kings  x,  9.  M  Kings  iv,  25. 


EARLY   INHABITANTS  OF   PALESTINE,  111 

Canaan,  son  of  Ham,  and  grandson  of  Koali,  who  is  supposed  to 
have  lived  and  died  here.  Hence,  the  country  was  early  called 
the  "  Land  of  Canaan,"  *  which  properly  applied  only  to  West- 
ern Palestine,  as  the  nations  east  of  the  Jordan  were  of  Semitic 
origin.  The  first  settlements  of  the  Canaanites  were  in  the  low 
valley  of  the  Jordan,  and  on  the  plains  of  Philistia  and  Phoe- 
nicia, "  by  the  sea,"  *  as  the  name  signifies  dwellers  in  the  low 
lands,  or  by  the  sea  ;  and  we  are  informed  that  Zidon,  the  eldest 
son  of  Canaan,  founded  the  city  that  l)ears  his  name,  and  was 
father  of  the  Sidonians  and  Phoenicians.  Canaan  had  ten  other 
sons  who  were  heads  of  as  many  tribes  dwelling  in  this  land, 
80  that  most  if  not  all  of  the  nations  occupying  Syria  in  the 
days  of  the  patriarchs  were  Canaanites.  These  tril)es,  on  ac- 
count of  their  idolatry  and  great  wickedness,  were  driven  out 
or  exterminated  by  the  Israelites,  who,  except  at  short  intervals, 
held  the  country  until  David's  illustrious  successor — our  world's 
Redeemer — came  and  set  up  his  spiritual  kingdom,  confined  to 
no  particular  land  or  race,  being  a  kingdom  of  righteousness 
and  peace,  and  destined  to  prevail  in  the  earth  until  all  "the 
kingdoms  of  this  world  become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord,  and 
of  his  Christ."" 

Western  Palestine,  that  is,  "  from  Dan  to  Beer-sheba,"  is  only 
about  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  long,  by  one  third  that  dis- 
tance wide,  and  yet  this  narrow  strip  of  territory,  of  no  partic- 
ular value  in  itself,  is  replete  with  historic  and  sacred  interest. 
Forming,  as  it  does,  the  key  to  Western  Asia,  it  has  been  held 
at  different  periods  by  all  the  great  nations  of  antiquity,  and 
may  very  properly  be  styled  "  the  battle-field  of  the  world." 
The  surface  of  the  country  is  broken  and  rocky,  the  spurs  of 
the  Lebanon  range  of  mountains  extending  the  entire  length  of 
'  G^enesis  xiii,  12.  ^  Numbers  xiii,  29.  ^  Revelation  xi,  15. 


112 


BEBLE   LANDS. 


the  land,  forming  the  great  divide  between  the  Mediterranean 
on  the  west,  and  the  Jordan  valley  on  the  east.  The  soil,  how- 
ever, is  exceedingly  rich,  and  capable  of  sustaining  ten  times 
the  present  population.  It  is  still  a  country  "  of  com  and  oil 
and  wine."  The  olive  and  vine  grow  luxuriantly  on  the  lime- 
Btone  ridges,  and  the  fertile  plains  of  Sharon  and  Esdraelon, 
under  proper  cultivation,  would  still  yield  a  hundred-fold  of 
wheat,  barley,  or  other  cereals ;  and  the  yield  of  these  prod- 


TENT-LIFK  IN  THE  HOLT  LAND. 


ucts  must  always  have  been  great,  as  the  numerous  ancient  oil 
and  wine  presses  cut  in  the  solid  rock,  and  the  many  threshing- 
floors  every-where  to  be  seen,  fully  attest. 

There  are  no  roads  or  public  conveyances  in  Palestine  proper, 
except  between  Jaffa  and  Jerusalem ;  so  in  making  the  tour  of 
the  Holy  Land  you  are  required  to  employ  a  dragoman,  who 
will  furnish  tents,  horses,  beds,  and  every  thing  else  necessary 
for  the  journey.     And  there  is  something  very  romantic  in 


CHARACTER  OF  THE   COUNTRY.  113 

this  tent  life.  Just  fancy  the  pleasure  of  traveling  over  the 
same  hills  and  through  the  same  valleys  once  trodden  by  the 
weary  feet  of  God's  eternal  Son.  Camping  on  Olivet,  lunch- 
ing at  Jericho,  bathing  in  the  Jordan,  drinking  from  Jacob's 
well,  sleeping  in  Nazareth,  and  then  spending  a  Sunday  on 
Carmel,  Tabor,  or  some  other  mount  of  equal  interest — could 
any  thing  be  more  inspiring  ? 

The  present  population  of  Palestine  is  not  over  four  hundred 
thousand,  and  appears  yearly  to  be  diminishing.  No  new  vil- 
lages are  springing  up,  and  the  old  ones  are  slowly  going  to 
decay.  The  people,  too,  are  becoming  impoverished  ;  there  is 
less  wealth  among  the  fellaheen,  fewer  horses,  camels,  and  stock 
of  all  kinds,  than  formerly.  Fruit  and  forest  trees  are  also 
disappearing.  Carmel  was  almost  stripped  of  its  timber  for 
the  Suez  Canal,  and,  as  fruit  trees  are  taxed  whether  they  bear 
or  not,  few  are  planted.  Every  thing  appears  to  be  finished ; 
there  is  no  progress,  no  improvement  of  any  kind. 

These  evils  are  in  part  owing  to  the  frequent  incursions  of 
the  Bedouins,  and  consequent  insecurity  of  life  and  property. 
These  wild  Arabs  of  the  desert  are  as  uncivilized  as  they 
were  three  thousand  years  ago,  and  the  government  seems 
to  have  no  control  over  them.  Within  a  year  they  have 
plundered  villages  and  robbed  caravans  in  sight  of  Jerusalem. 
But  this  condition  of  things  is  mainly  due  to  Turkish  rule,  or 
rather  misrule.  The  people  have  no  constitutional  government, 
no  courts  of  justice,  no  trials  by  jury.  The  Sultan  claims  to 
own  the  country  and  every  thing  in  it.  The  taxes,  which 
amount  to  from  ten  to  fifty  per  cent.,  are  not  equally  assessed, 
but  farmed  out  to  the  highest  bidder,  who  frequently  is  some 
merciless  agent  of  the  Government.  This  system  of  taxation  is 
crushing  the  nation  to  deatli,  and  has  brought  about  the  present 


114  BIBLE   LANDS. 

wretched  condition  of  Turkey,  which  is  due  ahnost  wholly 
to  the  rapacity,  corruption,  and  cruelty  of  the  pashas  and  their 
tax-collectors,  who  have  literally  sucked  the  life-blood  out  of 
the  land.  It  is  no  object  for  the  oppressed  tillers  of  the  soil 
to  raise  any  thing  beyond  their  immediate  wants,  as  they  are 
despoiled  of  all  their  surplus  crops  by  these  rapacious  task- 
masters. 

If  half  the  extortion  is  true  these  collectors  are  charged  with, 
they  must  be  worse  than  the  publicans  of  old.  Then,  all  the 
able-bodied  men  are  pressed  into  the  army,  leaving  only  the 
aged  and  the  women  to  cultivate  the  land.  These  peasant 
women  do  most  of  the  manual  labor,  are  generally  treated  as 
slaves,  never  as  the  equals  of  man,  and,  like  all  women  in  the 
Orient,  occupy  a  subordinate  jjosition,  and  have  no  rights  that 
man  is  bound  to  respect.  They  are  good  field  liands,  and 
many  of  them  very  powerful.  During  the  late  war,  the  Ilus- 
sians  having  captured  a  Turkish  fortress  in  which  there  were 
many  females,  the  Russian  officer  in  command  issued  an  order 
permitting  all  the  women  to  leave,  taking  with  them  an}'  thing 
they  could  carry.  He,  however,  was  greatly  surprised  when 
he  saw  every  woman  march  out  with  a  man  on  her  back  ! 

In  the  Ottoman  Empire  all  soldiers  are  conscripted,  and  no 
substitutes  allowed.  It  is  a  singular  fact,  however,  that  the 
men  who  can  afford  to  pay  liberal  haclcsheesh  are  never  drafted. 
The  law  provides  that  only  one  out  of  a  family  shall  be  taken, 
but  tlie  demand  for  men  is  so  great  they  take  all  old  enough  to 
serve.  The  law  also  exempts  an  only  son  and  the  husband  of  a 
helpless  wife ;  no  respect,  however,  is  paid  to  this  statute.  After 
the  conscription  they  are  allowed  to  return  home  for  a  few 
weeks,  but  should  they  fail  to  report  for  duty  at  the  proper 
time,  and  can't  be  found,  the  next  of  kin — perhaps  the  father,  or 


FOREIGN  CONSULATES.  115 

an  elder  brother — is  arrested,  and  held  as  a  hostage  till  the  sol- 
dier is  delivered  up,  who  is  severely  bastinadoed  as  a  deserter. 
You  can  conceive  of  nothing  more  heart-rending  than  the 
removal  of  these  conscripts  from  their  villages.  The  friends 
gather  round  them  and  sit  and  weep  for  hours.  The  whole  vil- 
lage is  in  mourning,  and  when  finally  they  are  marched  off 
their  relatives  follow  them  as  to  the  grave. 

On  one  occasion  we  witnessed  the  departure  of  a  regiment 
of  these  men  for  the  seat  of  war.  It  was  an  affecting  scene  to 
see  them  first  kiss  and  then  embrace  their  loved  ones.  A  long 
caravan  of  camels  led  the  way  with  the  baggage ;  then  came 
the  soldiers  on  foot,  followed  by  their  friends — wives  with  their 
babes  either  sitting  on  their  shoulders  or  slung  over  their  backs, 
and  mothers  weeping  as  if  their  hearts  would  break.  One, 
both  aged  and  blind,  was  led  up  that  she  might  touch  once  more 
her  son  and  only  support,  and  as  she  laid  her  wrinkled  hand 
upon  his  face  his  manly  heart  gave  way,  and  he  wept  like  a  lit- 
tle child.  Poor  wretches  !  well  might  they  weep !  for  they  serve 
without  pay,  have  nothing  to  leave  for  the  support  of  their 
families,  and  not  one  in  ten  will  ever  return  again. 

But  the  saddest  scene  was  after  the  soldiers  had  all  left, 
when  the  crowd  dispersed,  and  the  wives  and  children,  mothers 
and  sisters,  came  back  through  the  gates  of  the  city  to  their 
desolate  homes,  with  no  means  to  support,  no  religion  to  com- 
fort, no  Government  to  protect  them. 

Foreigners  are  not  subject  to  these  outrages,  and  are  about 
the  only  privileged  class  in  the  country.  Turkey  by  her  treat- 
ies with  foreign  nations  transfers  all  authority  over  foreigners 
to  their  respective  consuls.  So  that  a  citizen  of  another  coun- 
try, residing  in  Turkey,  is  under  the  exclusive  jurisdiction  of 

his  consul,  who  alone  has  power  to  arrest,  try,  and  punish  him; 

8 


116  BIBLE   LANDS. 

and  all  charges  against  liim  must  be  presented  in  the  consular 
court  of  his  own  country,  of  which  the  consul  is  judge  and 
jury.  The  result  is,  we  have  a  dozen  or  more  independent 
triJDunals  representing  the  leading  nations  of  the  world,  clothed 
with  almost  absolute  authority,  and  exercising,  in  some  cases,  the 
power  of  life  and  death.  Each  consulate  is  the  head  of  the 
government  it  represents,  and  has  its  own  subjects,  courts,  offi- 
cers, and  prison,  and  the  execution,  if  not  the  making,  of  its  own 
laws.  The  decisions  of  these  different  courts  are  often  partial, 
and  sometimes  conflict  with  each  other,  and,  there  being  no 
court  of  appeals  or  international  court  having  appellate  juris- 
diction in  such  cases,  many  questions  can  never  be  settled,  and 
the  guilty  often  go  unpunished ;  bo  that  really,  with  all  these 
courts  and  governors,  there  is  very  little  justice,  and  very  poor 
government. 

Jerusalem  is  a  city  of  about  thirty  thousand  inhabitants — 
twenty  thousand  of  whom  are  Jews,  the  remainder  being  about 
equally  divided  between  Mohammedans  and  Christians.  The 
Christian  population  is  made  np  of  Greeks,  Latins,  Arminians, 
Syrians,  Copts,  and  a  few  Protestants.  With  the  exception  of 
those  earnest  workers  connected  with  the  Protestant  missions 
there  is  very  little  vital  piety  among  any  of  them,  every  thing 
formal,  ceremonial,  mechanical.  The  late  Bight  Rev.  Bishop 
Gobat,  Anglican  Bishop  of  Jerusalem,  was  a  liberal,  intelligent, 
godly  man,  and  did  much  for  his  Master's  cause.  After  spend- 
ing more  than  half  a  century  in  hard  missionary  work  in  Abys- 
sinia and  Syria,  in  his  eightieth  year  he  resigned  his  office,  and 
with  it  his  life,  as  within  a  few  months  thereafter  death  closed 
his  eventful  career.  May  his  mantle  fall  on  some  worthy 
Elisha ! 

About  the  only  difference  between   the  Greek  and   Latin 


THE  FUTURE  OF  PALESTINE.  117 

Churches  is  the  absence  in  the  former  of  all  images,  and  then 
the  privilege  is  allowed  her  priesthood  of  marrying  once.  A 
friend  of  mine,  stopping  on  one  occasion  with  a  Greek  priest, 
observed  him  washing  the  clothes,  and  doing  many  other  little 
turns  the  good  housewife  usually  attends  to  with  us,  and  was 
prompted  to  inquire  of  the  priest  if  his  wife  was  sick  ?  "  O, 
no ! "  was  the  reply,  "  but  you  know  we  priests  are  only  al- 


A    POLISH   JEW. 


lowed  one  wife,  and  if  I  permitted  my  wife  to  expose  herself 
she  might  take  cold  and  die ;  then  what  would  become  of  me  ? 
I  could  never  marry  again."  Sure  enough ;  what  would  become 
of  our  poor  widowers  if  they  could  never  marry  again  ? 

"What  the  future  of  Palestine  is  to  be  under  the  protectorate 
of  England  time  alone  can  tell.  How  far  the  Sublime  Porte 
will  carry  out  the  proposed  reforms  remains  to  be  seen.  We 
predict,  however,  an  utter  failure,  as  the  great  mass  of  the  popu- 


118  BIBLE   LANDS. 

lation  are  bigoted  Mohammedans,  who  would  rather  die  than 
submit  to  Christian  rule.  And  as  to  the  return  of  God's  scat- 
tered Israel  to  the  Promised  Land,  we  must  wait  further  devel- 
opments. There  are  now  about  thirty  thousand  Jews  in  all 
Palestine.  They  are  mostly  from  Poland  and  Russia,  and  come 
here  not  to  develop  the  country  but  from  religious  motives — to 
mourn  over  the  desolation  of  Zion,  and  to  die,  where  their  bodies 
may  sleep  with  their  fathers  in  holy  ground.  They  are  gener- 
ally aged  and  poor,  living  on  the  alms  of  their  people  collected 
in  Europe  and  America.  It  will  require  a  different  class  of 
immigrants  altogether  to  restore  this  cursed  land  to  what  it 
once  was.  The  latest  programme  for  Palestine  is  not  Jewish 
but  papal  occupancy.  The  Jesuits  of  Europe  are  dissatisfied 
with  the  state  of  things  in  Italy,  and  there  is  a  movement  on 
foot  to  make  Jerusalem  the  head  of  the  Latin  Church.  Com- 
missioners have  been  appointed  to  negotiate  for  the  territory. 
Engineers  have  surveyed  a  railroad  from  Jaffa  to  Jerusalem. 
Money  is  being  collected  for  this  road,  and  the  erection  of  a 
magnificent  palace  for  his  holiness  on  Mount  Zion,  to  which 
the  wealth  of  the  Vatican  is  to  be  transferred ;  here  the  suc- 
cessors of  St.  Peter  are  to  reign,  and  the  "  City  of  the  Great 
King"  is  to  be  the  future  head  of  the  Romish  Pontificate. 
Russia  and  England,  however,  may  have  something  to  say  in 
the  future  disposition  of  Palestine. 


CHAPTER  II. 

FROM   JAFFA  TO  JERUSALEM. 

Oldest  Seaport  in  the  World — Difficulty  of  Landing — Oriental  Life — Plain  of 
Sharon — City  of  the  Great  King — First  Impressions — Jews'  Wailingplace — 
Ruin  and  Desolation — Interest  Awakened  by  the  Holy  Places. 

JAFFA,  or  ancient  Joppa,  the  port  of  Jerusalem,  and  oldest 
sea-port  in  the  world,  the  very  same  from  which  Jonah 
embarked  on  his  eventful  voyage,  and  where,  it  is  said,  Noah 
launched  his  ark  upon  the  shoreless  deep,  is  one  of  the  most 
dangerous  harbors  to  enter,  and,  when  the  weather  is  stormy, 
to  land  is  almost  impossible. 

We  had  been  favored  with  pleasant  weather  and  a  pleasant 
passage  over  the  Mediterranean,  and  were  promising  ourselves 
a  pleasant  landing  the  next  morning  at  Jaffa,  when  about  mid- 
night, the  last  night  we  were  out,  all  at  once  there  arose  a 
fearful  storm,  and  as  we  approached  the  port  in  the  early  morn 
the  wind  was  blowing  a  gale,  and  the  waves  threatened  to  en- 
gulf the  little  boats  that  ventured  out  to  take  the  passengers 
ashore.  Many  on  board  were  pilgrims  on  their  way  to  the 
holy  places,  and  it  was  frightful  to  see  the  poor  wretches 
swung  out  over  the  sides  of  the  ship  by  ropes  tied  round  their 
waists,  and,  after  dangling  in  the  air  till  the  proper  moment, 
dropped  into  the  boats  below,  the  sea  being  too  rough  to  land 
them  in  the  usual  way.  Finally,  it  came  our  turn  to  quit  the 
ship.  How  this  was  accomplished  we  shall  leave  for  some  one 
else  to  relate.     The  great  difficulty  was  in  getting  into  the 

small  boat,  which  one    moment   would   rise    level   with   the 

119 


120  BIBLE   LANDS. 

steamer's  deck,  and  the  next  sink  with  the  receding  waters 
until  lost  to  view  under  the  sides  of  the  ship.  With  fear  and 
trembling  we  waited  our  opportunity,  and,  as  the  little  boat 
rose  on  the  swell  of  the  sea,  made  the  leap ;  it  seemed  like  leap- 
ing into  the  jaws  of  death,  but  a  gracioiis  Providence  ordered 
it  otherwise.  Though  now  safely  in  the  boat,  we  were  still  a 
mile  from  shore.  .  I  shall  never  forget  that  ride.  The  storm 
raged  with  increasing  violence.  I  thought  of  Jonah's  advent- 
ure on  this  same  coast,  of  Paul's  shipwreck  in  this  same  sea, 
and  of  Andromeda  chained  to  the  rocks  over  which  the  waves 
were  now  dashing,  threatening  us  with  the  same  fate.  One 
billow  broke  over  us,  and  when  my  wife  exclaimed,  "  We  are 
lost !  we  are  lost ! "  I  thought  for  a  moment  we  were  gone. 
Another  wave  like  it  would  certainly  swamp  us  ;  and  it  is  com- 
ing ;  we  see  its  foaming  crest  on  our  starboard  ;  it  is  also  seen  at 
the  same  moment  by  the  helmsman.  "  Hard-a-port ! "  he  shouts 
to  the  six  swarthy  men  at  the  oars.  The  wave  strikes  us  harm- 
lessly, and,  lifting  us  like  a  feather  on  its  heaving  bosom,  bears 
us  safely  to  the  shore. 

Jaffa  contains  a  population  of  perhaps  fifteen  thousand,  not- 
withstanding it  has  been  destroyed  and  rebuilt  a  dozen  times. 
The  last  scene  in  its  bloody  history  was  enacted  by  Napoleon  I. 
in  1Y99,  when  he  cruelly  put  to  death  its  garrison  of  four 
thousand  Albanians,  after  stipulating,  as  a  condition  of  sur- 
render, that  their  lives  should  be  spared ;  and  then  poisoned  his 
own  soldiers  who  were  too  sick  to  follow  him  in  his  retreat  from 
Syria,  after  his  repulse  at  Acre.  The  site  of  Simon's  house, 
"  the  tanner "  with  wliom  Peter  was  stopping  when  he  raised 
Tabitha  to  life,  and  where  he  had  his  vision  of  tlie  Gospel  dis- 
pensation, is  still,  with  good  authority,  pointed  out  "  by  the 
sea-side." 


JAFFA. 


121 


The  city,  being  situated  on  a  commanding  bluff,  crowned 
with  the  governor's  palace,  presents  a  picturesque  appearance 
from  the  water ;  but  no  sooner  do  your  feet  touch  the  shore 
than  all  these  first  impressions  are  dissipated.  The  streets  are 
crooked,  narrow,  and  filthy ;  crowded  with  camels,  donkeys 
and  dogs,  beggars,  lepers,  and  half -naked  Arabs,  rendering  it 
difficult  to  pass  between  them.  The  moment,  however,  you 
leave  the  city  the  whole  scene  is  changed.     You  are  now  in 


122 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


A 


the  land  of  sacred  and  classic  lore,  of  dreams  and  legends,  of 
sunshine  and  flowers.  And  the  groves  of  bananas,  oranges  and 
pomegranates,  inclosed  with  hedges  of  blooming  cacti ;  the  veiled 
women  reclining  imder  the  palm-trees,  or  strolling  among  the 
tombs ;  and  the  turbaned  men,  with  their  long  beards  and  flow- 
ing robes  sitting  in  the  city  gates,  or  smoking  their  nargilehs 
under  their  "  own  vine  and  fig-tree,"  remind  one  of  patriarchal 
times,  and  present  a  scene  only  to  be  met  with  in  the  East. 

Jerusalem  is  two  thousand  six  hundred  feet  above,  and  thirty- 
five  miles  east  of  Jaffa ;  and  apart  from  the  wretched  people 


KIRJATH-JKARIM KMMAIJS. 


yon  meet  by  the  way,  some  blind,  others  lame,  and  all  in  rags, 
nothing  could  be  more  delightful  than  this  ride  of  ten  hours. 
For  twenty  miles  the  road  lies  over  the  flowery  Plain  of  Sha- 
ron, the  country  of  the  old  Philistines,  and  through  the  very 
corn-fields  destroyed  by  Samson's  foxes.  "We  begin  ascending 
the  Mountains  of  Judea  from  the  valley  of  Ajalon,  where 
Joshua  defeated  the  five  kings  of  the  Amorites.  The  road 
from  here  crosses  a  succession  of  ridges,  from  the  summits  of 


THE   CITY  OF  THE   GREAT   KING.  123 

which  we  get  grand  views  of  the  Land  of  Canaan  ;  from  one 
point  in  particular,  near  Emmaus,  where  Christ  revealed  him- 
self to  two  of  his  disciples  on  the  day  of  his  resurrection,  the 
whole  plain  of  Sharon,  from  Carmel  to  Askelon,  dotted  with 
villages,  with  the  blue  sea  on  the  distant  horizon,  may  be  seen. 
But  we  have  no  time  to  muse  on  the  landscape.  The  object 
of  our  journey  and  our  heart's  desire  lies  just  beyond  the  ridge 
before  us — the  highest  of  the  range.  We  spur  up  our  jaded 
liorses,  and  soon  cross  the  great  mountain  barrier  between  the 
Dead  Sea  and  Mediterranean,  when  lo !  Jerusalem,  all  aglow 
in  the  gleams  of  a  gorgeous  sunset,  bursts  upon  our  vision,  and 
with  hearts  throbbing  with  unutterable  emotion  we  ride  through 
the  "  Gates  of  Zion,"  and  dismount  in  the  "  City  of  God." 

If  in  visiting  the  battle-fields  of  Marathon  or  Bunker  Hill 
one  feels  inspired  with  patriotic  ardor,  is  it  not  a  cold  philoso- 
phy which  would  suppress  our  religious  emotions  when  we 
visit  the  scene  of  our  Lord's  great  triumph  over  death  and  hell  ? 
Such  objects  of  interest  as  Bethany,  Gethsemane,  and  Gol- 
gotha give  wings  to  our  faith,  and  warm  the  heart  with  in- 
creased zeal.  Though  we  may  not  be  able  to  determine  the 
precise  spot  where  the  events  occurred  which  render  sacred 
these  places,  such  is  the  influence  of  the  name  of  Jesus,  and 
the  glory  of  his  personal  presence,  the  whole  land  seems  fra- 
grant with  his  memory.  What  hallowed  recollections  the  walls 
and  towers  of  Zion  awaken !  What  influences  have  gone  out 
from  this  center !  Toward  Calvary  the  hearts  of  millions  daily 
turn  for  comfort,  and  when  we  have  forgotten  every  other 
event  of  time,  the  Cross,  with  its  bleeding,  dying  Victim,  the 
tomb  of  Joseph,  radiant  with  immortality,  and  Olivet,  flashing 
with  the  glory  of  our  ascending  King,  will  still  be  fresh  in 
our  memories. 


12-i  BIBLE    LAXDS.     , 

True,  visiting  these  places  is  not  devotion,  nor  can  tliey 
make  us  better  or  wiser,  and  yet,  as  music  sootlies  tlie  soul,  and 
the  presence  of  a  friend  cheers  the  heart,  so  the  sight  of  these 
sacred  spots  fills  us  with  emotions  of  pleasure  we  can  never 
express. 

"  Even  the  lifeless  stone  is  dear 
For  thoughts  of  Him. "' 

Alas  for  our  race,  if  we  had  to  come  to  the  Jordan  to  be 
baptized,  or  to  Jerusalem  to  worship  I  We  rejoice  in  the  pure, 
simple,  majestic  system  of  salvation  by  faith  in  Christ,  stripped 
of  all  the  forms,  legends,  and  superstitious  rites  that  a  corrupt 
priesthood  would  substitute  for  divine  worship.  Let  us  bless 
heaven  for  the  simple  truth,  the  priceless  gift  of  God  to  man ! 

Why  God  selected  tliis  city  before  all  others  for  the  habita- 
tion of  his  holiness  will,  perhaps,  never  be  known ;  but  so  long 
as  our  race  occupies  this  globe  the  name  of  Jerusalem  will  be 
sacred.  It  must  always  be  regarded  as  the  capital  of  Christen- 
dom, the  great  center  of  religious  interest,  and  the  most  mem- 
orable spot  on  earth.  Even  they  who  discard  our  faith  must 
reverence  this  city^  for  its  great  antiquity  and  historic  asso- 
ciations. Long  before  Rome,  or  Athens,  or  Thebes  was 
founded,  Jerusalem  lifted  her  towers  from,  the  crest  of  Mount 
Zion.  Though  dethroned  and  impoverished,  she  is  still  in- 
vested with  imperishable  dignity.  In  Solomon's  time  she  was 
"  the  perfection  of  beauty,"  the  "  joy  of  the  whole  earth ; " 
great  in  wealth,  powerful  in  war,  and  luxurious  in  peace.  Her 
gorgeous  Temple — the  first  ever  built  with  hands  for  the  invisi- 
ble Jehovah — and  her  magnificent  palaces  were  unrivaled. 
When  Titus  beheld  her  beauty  he  felt  grieved  to  mar  her 
works  of  art  with  the  sword  and  torch.  Richard,  the  lion- 
hearted  King  of  England,  counted  it  honor  enough  to   look 


FIRST   IMPRESSIONS.  127 

upon  her  battlements  from  the  top  of  Scopus.  The  army  of 
Crusaders,  after  lighting  their  way  to  the  very  portals  of  the 
Holy  City,  fell  upon  their  knees,  covered  their  faces  with  their 
shields,  and  wept  like  children,  considering  themselves  unworthy 
even  to  behold  her  glory ;  and  countless  thousands  of  noble 
knights  have  laid  down  their  lives  for  the  privilege  of  standing 
within  her  gates.  This  reverence  for  the  place  continues  to 
the  present.  Jew,  Mussulman,  and  Christian  still  consider  her 
the  Queen  city,  and  pilgrims  from  all  lands,  in  great  numbers, 
annually  visit  her.  Many  of  them  come  to  die,  esteeming  it  a 
privilege  to  be  buried  in  the  soil  made  sacred  by  the  ashes  of 
the  Patriarchs  and  the  blood  of  our  world's  Redeemer. 

The  first  impression  on  entering  the  city  is  one  of  disappoint- 
ment. There  is  nothing  cheerful  about  the  place  ;  a  mass  of 
stone  houses  of  Saracenic  style,  without  windows,  courts,  gar- 
dens, or  any  comforts ;  narrow,  gloomy  streets,  without  drain- 
age, lamps,  or  sidewalks.  On  Mount  Moriah  j^ou  see  the  cres- 
cent elevated  above  the  rock  over  which  the  grand  temple  of 
Solomon  once  lifted  its  golden  dome.  Mount  Zion,  the  site  of 
the  royal  city  of  David,  is  now  mostly  without  the  walls,  and 
used  as  a  cemetery.  Ophel,  once  the  most  magnificent  part  of 
the  city,  is  now  either  "  plowed  as  a  field  "  or  overrun  with 
weeds  and  prickly-pear.  The  valley  through  which  flowed 
"  the  sweet  gliding  Kedron  "  is  filled  up  with  loose  stones  to  a 
depth  of  from  forty  to  fifty  feet,  and  is  now  entirely  dry  ;  and 
much  of  the  city  within  the  walls  is  in  the  same  deplorable 
condition — open  courts  filled  with  garbage,  whole  squares  de- 
serted or  given  up  to  the  lepers  and  dogs,  and  the  entire  city 
"  trodden  down  by  the  Gentiles."  But  beneath  this  accumula- 
tion of  filth,  covered  with  rubbish,  lies  the  "  City  of  the  Great 
King."     Dig  down  almost  anywhere  within  the  old  walls,  fifty 


\ 


A 


128  BIBLE   LANDS. 

or  a  hundred  feet,  and  you  will  come  upon  broken  columns, 
grand  gate-ways,  massive  substructures,  and  other  remains  of 
a  great  city — in  fact,  city  over  city,  house  on  top  of  house, 
generation  above  generation.  This  buried  city  is  the  Jerusa- 
lem of  Christ.  It  was  through  these  subterranean  streets  that 
the  "  Man  of  sorrows "  bore  the  weighty  instrument  of  his 
torture  and  death  to  the  scene  of  his  crucifixion ;  and  in  the 
present  ruined  condition  of  the  place  we  see  the  literal  ful- 
fillment of  the  prophecy  he  uttered  in  reference  to  this  city, 
"  There  shall  not  be  left  one  stone  upon  another,  that  shall  not 
be  thrown  down."  * 

This  rubbish  is  the  accumulation  of  ages.  Jerusalem  has 
been  destroyed  a  score  of  times  by  war,  fire,  and  earthquakes, 
and  when  the  place  was  rebuilt  the  rubbish  was  not  removed, 
but  merely  leveled  off,  and  a  new  city  built  on  the  ruins  of  the 
old. 

Then  the  streets  of  all  Oriental  cities  are  very  narrow  and 
the  people  spend  most  of  their  time  in  the  open  air,  throwing 
all  their  garbage,  ashes,  and  every  thing  else  into  the  streets. 
So  if  we  suppose  this  offal  to  accumulate  at  the  rate  of  but  one 
inch  in  a  year,  we  have  in  twenty  centuries  one  hundred  and 
sixty  feet  of  debris. 

In  digging  a  foundation  for  a  mission  school  on  Mount  Zion, 
they,  at  a  depth  of  twenty  feet,  came  upon  a  large  column 
standing  erect,  belonging  to  some  ancient  edifice,  which  they 
concluded  to  use  as  a  corner-stone  for  the  foundation  ;  and  when 
the  house  was  completed  they  began  digging  in  the  court-yard 
for  a  cistern,  when  they  struck  ui3on  a  massive  stone  tower, 
probably  belonging  to  the  same  edifice  the  column  did,  which 
they  thought  would  answer  for  a  cistern  ;  but  when  cleaning  it 
'  Matthew  xxiv,  2. 


WAILENG-PLACE    OF   THE    JEWS. 


129 


out  before  cementing,  they  found  it  full  of  human  skulls  and 
bones,  the  skeletons,  perhaps,  of  soldiers  who  fell  in  defense  of 
their  citadel ;  and  that  old  tower  is  the  cistern  of  the  mission 
school  to-day. 

Those  who  feel  disappointed  in  the  wretched  outward  ap- 
pearance of  Jerusalem  forget  that  according  to  prophecy  the 


THE    JEWS'   WAIUNG-PLACE. 


place  was  to  be  "  laid  waste,"  and  become  a  "  heap  of  rubbish," 
and  that,  if  it  presented  any  other  appearance  than  it  does,  it 
would  lose  all  interest  to  the  Clyistian,  as  it  would  falsify  the 
predictions  concerning  it. 

Over  this  waste  the  Jews  are  constantly  pouring  their  lamenta- 


130  BIBLE   LAXDS. 

tions,  and  nothing  could  be  more  toucliinglj  sad  than  a  visit  to 
\  tlieir  "  wailing-place ''  on  the  western  side  of  the  old  temple 
wall,  they  not  being  allowed- to  enter  the  inelosure  of  their 
own  sanctuary.  Here,  on  the  eve  of  their  Sabbath,  hundreds 
of  the  children  of  Abraham  may  be  seen  kissing  the  cold 
stones,  some  praying,  or  reading  portions  of  Scripture,  and 
others  weeping  as  if  their  hearts  would  break  over  the  desola- 
tion of  Zion. 

They  come  from  all  lands — are  of  every  age,  from  youth  to 
fourscore  years ;  and  this  sobbing,  sorrowing  multitude  have 
been  coming  through  a  long  course  of  years,  century  after 
century,  ever  since  the  destruction  of  their  temple  and  city  by 
the  Romans.  'What  superstition,  what  devotion,  what  faith  ! 
Among  their  lamentations  may  be  heard,  "  O,  may  our  Father 
in  his  infinite  mercy  compassionate  his  orphans,  and  gather  his 
dispersed  children  to  the  holy  land !  O  Lord,  return  to  thy 
city !  build  thine  holy  oracles,  dwell  in  thine  house,  and  gather 
in  thy  scattered  flock.  May  it  please  God,  who  is  mighty  in 
works,  thus  to  command." 

And  it  is  so  with  the  whole  country.  You  see  nothing  but 
ruin  and  desolation  every-where.  The  people  are  poor  and 
ignorant,  the  land  neglected  and  barren,  and  the  towns  filthy 
and  cheerless.  Yet  many  of  these  insignificant  and  ruined  vil- 
lages possess  greater  interest  to  the  enlightened  Christian  than 
the  most  ancient  and  renowned  cities  of  the  pagan  world. 
What  is  Nineveh,  or  Babylon,  or  Thebes,  in  comparison  with 
Bethel,  or  Bethlehem,  or  Nazareth  ?  Many  count  it  a  gi'eat 
privilege  to  visit  the  tomb  of  Washington,  or  Xapoleon  ;  how 
much  more  to  visit  the  tomb  of  such  a  man  as  Abraham,  or 
Joseph,  or  David ! 


JERUSALEM 


CHAPTER  III. 

A    WALK    ABOUT    ZION. 

Stroll  Around  the  Holy  City — Points  of  Interest — Suggestive  of  Clirist's  Parables 
— Identity  of  the  Holy  Places — The  Enduring  Word — Result  of  Scientific 
Investigation. 

"jVTO  city  in  the  world  is  more  sacred  in  its  associations  than 
-L 1  Jerusalem,  and  none  more  charming  as  a  place  of  residence. 
The  average  summer  temperature  is  from  eightj-four  to  eighty- 
six  degrees  Fahrenheit,  and  the  winters  are  equally  mild  and 
pleasant — birds  singing  and  flowers  blooming  the  year  round. 

Fancy  for  a  moment  yourself  in  the  City  of  David  ;  getting 
up  early  to  see  the  sun  rise  over  the  mountains  of  Moab ;  then 
going  down  to  the  tomb  of  Christ,  or  up  into  the  "  courts  of 
the  Lord's  house  "  on  Moriah,  for  morning  prayers  ;  or  stroll- 
ing along  Via  Dolorosa,  under  the  Ecce  Homo  Arch,  by  the 
Judgment  hall  of  Pilate,  and  out  of  St.  Stephen's  gate ;  cross- 
ing the  Kedron  on  a  little  stone  bridge,  and  turning  into  the 
garden  of  Gethsemane  on  your  left  for  meditation  ;  sitting 
down  under  one  of  the  old  olive  trees  perhaps  marking  the 
spot  of  our  Lord's  agony,  and  gathering  beautiful  wild  flowers 
from  beneath  your  feet,  crimsoned  as  with  his  bloody  sweat ; 
then,  continuing  your  stroll  over  Olivet  by  the  Church  of  the 
Ascension,  pausing  for  a  moment  to  rest  on  the  traditional  rock 
where  Christ  sat  when  he  wej)t  over  the  doomed  city  of  the  Jews, 
and  on  out  to  Bethany,  visiting  the  reputed  house  of  Simon  the 
leper,  and  of  Mary  and  Martha,  and  the  tomb  of  their  brother 

Lazarus.     Then,  returning  bv  the  tombs  of  the  prophets,  and 

133 


134 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


KCCE   HOMO    ARCH. 


wandering  on  down  the  Kedron  Yalley  to  the  Pool  of  Siloam, 
bathing  your  eyes  in  its  limpid  waters,  that  they  may  never  ache 
again ;  and  sweeping  round  into  the  valley  of  Hinnom ;  climb- 
ing up  to  Aceldama,  on  the  slopes  of  the  Mount  of  Evil  Coun- 
Bel,  the  very  "  field  of  blood  "  purchased  with  the  thirty  pieces 
of  silver  Judas  received  for  the  betrayal  of  his  Lord ;  and  on 
up  the  steep  sides  of  Zion,  to  its  highest  summit ;  resting  for  a 
few  minutes  in  the  upper-room  where  it  is  said  the  disciples 
were  assembled  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  when  the  Holy  Ghost 
was  poured  out  upon  them ;  and  from  thence  through  the  gate 


A   WALK    ABOUT    ZIOjST. 


135 


of  Zion,  back  to  your  hotel  for  breakfast  by  eight  o'clock. 
Could  any  thing  be  more  delighful  than  such  a  morning  walk  ? 
You  can  live  more  in  one  year  here  than  in  a  life-time  anywhere 
else  in  all  the  world.  And,  what  is  remarkable,  these  places 
never  lose  their  interest.     The  whole  land  seems  to  breathe  an 


KEDRON    VALLKY. 


inspiration,  and  every  object  recalls  some  event  in  Scripture,  or 
serves  to  illustrate  some  of  our  Lord's  narratives  or  parables. 
The  sparrow  that  chirps  in  your  window  recalls  the  Saviour's 
discourse  on  a  special  providence,  and  you  can  almost  imagine 
you  hear  him  say,  "  Are  ye  not  of  more  value  than  many  spar- 
rows ? "     The  lilies  that  bloom  in  the  valley  forcibly  remind 


136 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


US  of  liis  beautiful  lessons  of  humility,  meekness,  and  faith. 
And  the  lepers  sitting  by  the  way-side,  the  fig-tree  putting  forth 
its  leaves,  the  shepherds  watching  their  flocks,  the  women 
grinding  at  the  mill,  the  men  praying  on  the  house-top,  and 
"  the  hyssop  that  springeth  out  of  the  walls,"  all  impress  us 
with  the  truthfulness  of  the  inspired  record. 


WOMEN   GRINDING    AT    A    MILL. 


And  is  it  not  refreshing  in  these  latter  days,  when  a  class  of 
skeptics  called  men  of  science  are  trying  to  discredit  revelation  by 
attributing  every  miracle  to  natural  causes,  and  treating  as  mere 
Oriental  legends  every  narrative  and  divine  truth  they  can't  ex- 
plain away  by  human  reasoning,  to  find  some  old  landmarks 
that  fully  corroborate  the  sacred  record,  and  establish  beyond 
controversy  the  credibility  of  the  Scriptures  ? 

The  Bible  was  not  written  as  a  book  of  science,  but  as  a  rev- 


IDENTITY  OF  THE   HOLY   PLACES.  187 

elation  bearing  upon  man's  moral  character  and  destiny.  Sci- 
entists should  confine  their  researches  to  the  natural  world.  It 
is  assumption  for  them  to  invade  the  spiritual,  and  treat  as 
"cunningly  devised  fables"  every  thing  they  cannot  compre- 
hend. The  great  truths  of  religion  are  to  be  received  by  faith, 
and  that  which  is  susceptible  of  demonstration  can  never  be  an 
object  of  faith.  "  If  any  man  do  his  will,  he  shall  know  of 
the  doctrine,  whether  it  be  of  God."  ' 

Many  visit  the  Holy  Land  with  the  evident  intent  of  throw- 
ing discredit  on  every  thing  sacred.  One  author  writes :  "  I 
like  to  feel  assured  that  all  these  localities  are  fabulous  and 
apocryphal ; "  another  facetiously  remarks  in  reference  to  the 
tombs  of  the  patriarchs,  "  I  don't  know  and  don't  care  where 
they  are  buried ;  "  also  in  speaking  of  the  place  of  our  Saviour's 
birth,  death,  and  resurrection,  many,  without  investigating  the 
subject,  indulge  in  the  expressions  "purely  fabulous,  unmiti- 
gated fictions,"  "  nothing  but  lying  legends."  And  yet  there 
never  has  been  and  never  can  be  one  sound  argument  offered 
against  the  verity  of  these  places.  ]S"ot  only  the  Bible,  but  all 
history,  sacred  and  profane,  backed  by  the  traditions  of  eighteen 
hundred  years,  and  supported  by  all  modern  explorations  and 
scientific  researches,  fixes  the  location  of  these  events  on,  or  very 
near,  the  precise  spots  where  tiiey  are  pointed  out.  The  identity 
of  the  Coliseum  at  Rome,  or  the  Parthenon  at  Athens,  cannot 
be  more  clearly  established  than  that  of  the  temple  of  Solo- 
mon, the  inn  of  Bethlehem,  or  the  tomb  of  Christ. 

We  greatly  deplore  that  these  holy  places  have  fallen  into 
the  hands  of  ignorant,  unprincipled  priests  and  monks,  who 
practice  all  kinds  of  deception  on  the  credulous,  and  abuse 
their  office  by  making  merchandise  of  sacred  things.     Still, 

'John  vii,  17. 


\/^ 


138 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


this  does  not  affect  the  truth,  and  we  are  not  to  reject  the  real 
because  superstition  has  invested  it  with  ridiculous  absurdities 
and  falsehoods.  Some  argue  that  our  Lord  designedly  blotted 
out  every  trace  of  his  presence  when  on  earth,  and  that  the 
world  was  never  to  know  where  the  great  events  of  his  history 
transpired.      But  why?     We  see  his  foot-prints  in  creation, 


GETHSEMANE    AND    OLIVET. 


why  not  in  redemption  ?  Why  tell  us  where  he  was  born — all 
the  circumstances  of  his  life ;  the  river  in  which  he  was  bap- 
tized ;  the  name  of  the  city  where  he  lived  ;  the  locality  of  the 
miracles  he  wrought ;  the  garden  in  which  he  was  betrayed ; 
the  palace  of  the  high-priest  before  whom  he  was  arraigned  ; 
the  king  before  whom  he  was  tried ;  the  place  where  he  was 
crucified,  and  all  the  particulars  of  his  burial,  resurrection,  and 


RESULTS  OF  SCIENTIFIC   INVESTIGATION.  139 

ascension,  if  no  trace  of  these  events  was  ever  afterward  to  be 

discovered  ? 

Dr.  Robinson,  in  his  researches,  established  it  as  a  rule,  "  that 

no  traditional  information  was  of  any  authority."     Yet  many 

* 
of  these  traditions  are  of  undoubted  antiquity,  and  must  have 

originated  in  facts.     And  we  hold  that  the  identity  of   the 

places  mentioned  in  the  Scriptures  constitutes  a  strong  collateral 

argument  in  support  of  their  authenticity ;  that  the  laud  should 

be  in  perfect  harmony  with  tlie  book — the  one  the  exponent 

of  the  other. 

The  Bible  gives  an  unvarnished  statement  of  certain  facts, 
covering  a  period  of  many  centuries,  and  is  particular  in  giving 
names,  dates,  locations,  and  all  the  details  of  the  events  as  they 
transpired.  Xow,  if  these  events  actually  occurred,  there 
should  be  some  traces  of  them  left  in  the  topography  of  the 
country,  and  in  the  language,  manners,  traditions,  and  social 
condition  of  the  people;  otherwise  we  would  have  reason  to 
doubt  the  record,  and  every  inquirer  after  truth  visiting  these 
localities  should  carefully  weigh  and  examine  for  himself  the 
external  evidence  they  furnish  in  support  of  the  facts. 

What  is  the  result  of  recent  scientific  investigation  ?  I  ain 
happy  to  say  that  all  researches  in  Palestine  fully  agree  with 
the  facts,  and  establish  beyond  doubt  the  inspired  record ;  and, 
what  is  very  remarkable,  almost  every  place  mentioned  in  the 
Bible  wliere  any  great  event  transpired  may  still  be  identified 
by  its  old  Hebrew  name  in  the  Arabic  form — a  most  wonderful 
philological  argument  in  support  of  the  record.  Lieut.  Lynch 
and  Captain  Warren,  in  their  explorations,  have  brought  to  light 
arguments  that  must  forever  silence  the  objections  of  infidelity. 
The  discovery  of  the  Moabite  stone  in  1868 — the  oldest  alpha- 
betic inscription  known — supplies  a  lost  chapter  in  the  history 


140  BIBLE   LANDS. 

of  our  race,  agreeing  exactly  with  the  word  ot  God ;  and 
the  late  exploration  of  the  Desert  of  Tih,  or  "  Wilderness  of 
the  "Wanderings,"  by  Messrs.  Palmer  and  Drake,  has  resulted 
not  only  in  tracing  out  the  route  of  the  Israelites,  but  in  locat- 
ing many  of  their  encampments  in  the  desert.'  Even  the  old 
\  Pharaohs  of  Egypt  are  coming  forth  from  their  dusty  tombs 
to  bear  testimony  to  the  truth  of  what  Moses  wrote  more  than 
three  thousand  years  ago.  The  Bible  is  ever3'-where  found — 
written  on  the  very  rocks,  amid  the  ruins  of  the  past,  and  in 
the  language,  customs,  and  present  condition  of  the  country. 
Such  biblical  names  as  Abraham,  Jacob,  Moses,  Esau,  and 
Joseph  prevail  all  over  the  East ;  and  there  is  scarcely  a  wild 
Bedouin  of  the  desert  but  will  correctly  point  out  to  the  trav- 
eler Mount  !N'ebo,  Hor,  Sinai,  and  the  site  of  almost  every  city 
mentioned  in  the  Bible,  and  relate  the  principal  events  con- 
nected therewith.  Names  and  places  rarely  change  in  the  Ori- 
ent, and  great  events  are  never  forgotten.  True,  the  wars, 
storms,  and  earthquakes  of  two  thousand  years  have  wrought 
many  physical,  moral,  and  political  changes,  but  they  have  not 
destroyed  the  old  landmarks.  There  is  also  much  of  the  tradi- 
tional and  superstitious  mingled  with  the  real.  Still,  the 
mountains  and  valleys,  lakes  and  rivers,  birds  and  flowers, 
remain  much  the  same,  and  the  inquirer  after  truth  will  find 
the  Scriptures  every-where  written  on  the  very  face  of  the 
Holy  Land. 

Facts  are  stubborn  things  to  resist,  and  geographical  facts 
most  stubborn  of  all ;  but  there  is  no  conflict  here  with  Reve- 
lation. The  plains  of  Moreh  and  Mamre,  where  Abraham 
first  pitched  his  tent  and  erected  his  altar  in  the  land  of 
Canaan,  remain  as  they  were  four  thousand  years  ago.     The 

'  The  Desert  of  the  Exodus,  pp.  25,  21. 


A 


RESULTS    OF    SCIENTIFIC    INVESTIGATION. 


141 


descendants  of  his  son,  Ishmael,  are  wild  men  still,  as  uncivii- 
ized  to-day  as  tliej  ever  were.  Maclipelah,  the  resting-place 
of  the  patriarchs,  has  never  been  disturbed,  and  remains  very 
much  as  when  Abraham  purchased  it  from  Ephron  the  Hittite, 
and  laid  in  its  vault  his  beloved  Sarah.    Mounts  Zion,  Hermon, 


-  ^^ 


CHURCH  OF  THE  ASCENSION. 


and  Moriah,  Pisgali,  Tabor,  and  Olivet  still  stand  upon  their 
firm  foundations,  beautiful  symbols  of  God's  unchanging  love. 
Jerusalem,  though  frequently  demolished,  has  never  been  en- 
tirely destroyed.  Dig  down  anywhere  within  the  old  walls,  and 
you  will  come  upon  streets  beautifully  paved,  grand  archways, 
deep  cisterns,  immense  columns,  secret  stair-cases,  and  long 
galleries  cut  through  the  solid  rock,  connecting  the  temple 


\ 


142  BIBLE    LANDS. 

inclosure  with  distant  fountains,  and  the  Tower  of  Antonia 
with  the  citadel  on  Mount  Zion — really  wonderful  to  behold. 

As  to  the  identity  of  the  valley  of  Hinnom  and  the  Kedron, 
the  Sea  of  Galilee  and  the  Jordan,  no  question  can  be  raised. 
So  with  the  well  of  Jacob,  the  pool  of  Siloam,  and  the  tomb 
of  Rachel.  Some  doubts  have  been  expressed  as  to  the  exact 
site  of  the  Saviour's  agony,  death,  "and  ascension  ;  but  you  feel 
when  visiting  the  places  designated  as  such  that  you  are  not  far 
from  the  precise  localities. 

Any  one  visiting  the  Valley  of  the  Dead  Sea — though  he  had 
never  seen  a  Bible,  never  heard  of  the  overthrow  of  Sodom 
and  Gomorrah — would  be  able  to  read  the  whole  account  of 
God's  terrible  judgments  which  destroyed  the  cities  of  the  plain, 
written  upon  the  scathed  rocks  and  desolate  mountains  which 
wall  in  that  dismal  gulf — lit  emblem  of  the  lake  of  fire. 

And  the  stranger  from  afar  who  never  heard  of  Solomon's 
gorgeous  Temple,  standing  on  Moriali,  seeing  the  massiveness 
and  height  of  the  walls  inclosing  the  sacred  rock,  exploring  the 
great  sea  and  other  subterranean  cisterns  and  vaults  that  under- 
lie the  whole  vast  area,  examining  the  numerous  beautiful 
gate-ways,  broken  columns,  and  arches  of  a  remote  antiquity, 
and  the  grand  system  of  aqueducts  that  supplied  the  place  with 
pure  water  from  mountain  springs  twenty  and  forty  miles  dis- 
tant, would  soon  be  persuaded  that  the  high  platform  on  whicli 
he  stood  must  at  one  time  have  been  the  site  of  some  grand 
temple  of  worsliip.  And  every  reader  of  the  Bible  would  be 
convinced  that  the  rock  beneath  the  dome  of  the  Mosque  of 
Omar  could  be  none  other  than  "  the  threshing-floor  of  Aran- 
nah,"  where  Abraham  built  his  altar  for  the  sacrifice  of  his 
son,  and  over  which  in  after  years  the  magnificent  Temple  of 
Solomon  was  erected. 


THE   ENDURING    WORD. 


143 


The  same  is  true  of  the  Grotto  of  the  !N'ativity  at  Bethle- 
hem, the  tomb  of  Qhrist  in  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulcher, 
and  many  other  places  hallowed  by  the  presence  of  Jesus. 
They  all  agree  with  the  accounts  as  given  by  the  evangelists, 
and  no  one,  after  carefully  examining  the  localities,  can  ques- 
tion the  fact  that  they  are  in  exact  accord  with  the  Bible  nar 
rative. 


VAULTS    UNDER   THE   TEMPLE  PLATFORM. 


Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  all  explored  and  identified  localities 
are  in  perfect  harmony  with  the  narrative  of  sacred  history ; 
and  the  imagery  of  the  Bible  also  wonderfully  corresponds 
with  the  natural  features,  productions,  and  customs  of  the  coun- 
try. The  natives  still  plow,  sow,  and  reap  as  of  old ;  the  soil 
still  retains  its  fertility;  the  streams  still  swarm  with  fish*, 
lilies  stiU  bloom  in  the  valleys ;  birds  still  lodge  in  the  branches 


144 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


of  the  mustard  tree ;  and  every  thing  mentioned  in  the  inspired 
volume  agrees  remarkably  with  the  present  state  and  condi- 
tion of  the  land.  There  are  no  discrepancies  between  the  geo- 
graphical statements  of  the  Bible  and  existing  facts,  or  the  to- 
pography  of  the  country.  All  discoveries  and  researches  not 
only  elucidate  the  Scriptures,  but  bear  witness  to  the  truth  of 
Revelation. 

Further  investigations  will,  no  doubt,  establish  the  locality  of 
other  places,  until  all  skepticism  as  to  the  verity  of  the  Script- 
ures has  been  removed,  and  the  truth  of  God's  word  is  estab- 
hshed  forever. 


EASTKKN    VIKW    FROM    TUJl    WALL    Of    JKKUSALKM. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

MORIAH — THE    MOUNTAIN   OF  THE  LORD'S  HOUSE. 

•Scene  of  Abraham's  Offering — Threshing-floor  of  Araunah — Site  of  Solomon's 
Temple — Rock  of  Foundation — Destroj-ed  by  the  Romans — Remains  of  the 
Noble  Sanctuary — Mosque  of  Omar — Reflections — Mosque  el  Aksa — Moham- 
medan Legends. 

THE  most  memorable  spot  on  earth,  and  the  only  spot  hon- 
ored of  God  through  long  ages  as  the  "  habitation  of  his 
hoHness,"  is  Mount  Moriah ;  where,  as  is  generally  believed, 
Melchizedek,  King  of  Salem,  officiated  as  "  priest  of  the  most 
high  God,"  and  Solomon  in  after  years  erected  the  first  temple 
ever- built  with  hands  for  the  worship  of  Jehovah,  on  the  spot, 
as  we  learn  from  Josephus,  where  Abraham  reared  his  altar  for 
the  sacrifice  of  his  only  son.  . 

It  is  one  of  the  four  mountains  on  which  Jerusalem  is  situ- 
ated, separated  from  Zion  on  the  west  by  the  Tyropceon  valley, 
and  from  Olivet  on  the  east  by  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat ;  and 
beyond  doubt  is  "  the  threshing-floor  of  Araunah  "  bought  by 
David  of  Oman,  the  Jebusite,  and  where  he  "  offered  his 
burnt-offerings  unto  the  Lord "  when  the  destroying  angel 
stood  with  drawn  sword  over  the  plague-stricken  city. 

It  is  not  our  intention  to  attempt   any  description   of  the 

"  House  of  the  Lord  "  as  it  appeared   in  all  its  glory  when 

the  Eternal  God  honored  it  with  his  presence,  but  to  fix,  if 

possible,  its  precise  location,  and  furnish  some  additional  facts 

corroborating  the  scriptural  account  of  this  unrivaled  structure. 

The  mural  and  other  remains  on  this  mount  are  of  such  a 

chai-acter,  and  the  topography  of  the  place  agrees  so  fully  with 

115 


146 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


the  inspired  record,  as  to  forbid  any  controversy  touching  its 
identity  as  Moriah. 

The  predictions  of  Christ  in  regard  to  the  Temple  itself 
have  been  Hterally  fulfilled — "not  one  stone  left  upon  an- 
other," '  all  above  ground  "  thrown  down."     There  are,  how- 


THE    GOLDEN    GATE. 


ever,  on  and  around  the  mountain,  traces  left  of  the  extent  and 
grandeur  of  the  buildings  which  once  adorned  its  crest.  Mass- 
ive walls,  grand  bridges,  beautiful  gate-ways,  and  other  remains 
of  the  Temple  and  its  courts,  clearly  indicating  its  outlines.  We 
also  find  here  vast  reservoirs  supplied  by  aqueducts  leading  off 

'  Matthew  xxiv,  2. 


IIAKA3I    INCLOSUKE. 


14: 


to  mountain  springs  thirty  miles  distant ;  secret  passages,  wide 
enough  for  three  men  to  walk  abreast,  cut  through  the  hard 
solid  rock  connecting  the  Temple  with  the  Citadel  on  Mount 
Zion  half  a  mile  distant ;  and  other  subterranean  rock-hewn  gal- 
leries, leading  down  to  Joab's  well  and  beyond,  a  hundred  feet 
below  the  surface,  together  with  large  sewers  to  convey  the 
blood  and  washings  of  the  great  altar  into  the  Kedron  valley. 
Even  the  private  staircases  that  went  under  the  Temple,  by 


GREAT    SLBTERRAXEAX    SEA. 


which  the  priests,  unobserved,  could  enter  or  retire,  and  which 

led  to  their  baths,  may  still  be  seen.     Much  of  the  old  material, 

such  as  fragments  of  sculpture,  rare  marbles,  and    beautiful 

columns  found  in  the  Mosque  of  Omar,  Church  of  the  Holy 

Sepulcher,  and  other  more  modem  buildings,  without  doubt 

belonged  to  the  Temple  and  its  cloisters.     There   are,  also, 

under  the  platform,  great  vaults  and  cisterns,  secret  doors  and 

mysterious  passages,  which  were  evidently  connected  with  the 
10 


148  BIBLE    LANDS. 

Holy  Sanctuary ;  and  all  the  outer  wall  up  to  the  present  sur- 
face of  the  ground,  which  inclosed  the  courts  of  the  Lord's 
House,  is  still  standing,  with  its  gates,  towers,  and  immense 
stones,,  beautifully  beveled  and  laid  in  regular  courses,  with  the 
marks  of  the  Phoenician  masons  still  upon  them,  just  as  they 
were  laid  by  Hiram's  builders.  This  wall  is  almost  a  mile  in 
extent,  and  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  and  forty  feet  high,  but 
mostly  covered  up  with  dehris.  It  gradually  recedes  as  it  rises 
each  course  of  stones  above  the  foundation  dropping  back  about 
three  inches.  The  lower  cpurses  not  only  rest  upon  the  living- 
rock,  but  are  anchored  with  lead  and  iron  to  the  mountain  it- 
self, and  the  storms  and  earthquakes  of  thirty  centuries  have 
failed  to  move  them  from  their  firm  foundation. 

The  stones  are  from  ten  to  forty  feet  long,  with  a  face 
from  four  to  six  feet,  and  a  depth  somewhat  greater.  And  yet 
these  ponderous  blocks  are  cut  and  fitted  with  so  much  pre- 
cision that  after  the  lapse  of  three  thousand  years  it  is  almost 
impossible  to  discover  the  seams  where  they  are  joined  together. 
There  is  no  such  piece  of  workmanship  in  Rome,  Greece,  or 
Egypt.  There  were  no  clippings  discovered,  except  where  the 
natural  rock  was  cut  away  to  receive  the  lower  course,  showing 
that  the  stones  were  all  dressed  before  brought  upon  the  ground  ; 
and  under  the  city,  just  north  of  the  temple  inclosure,  may 
still  be  seen  the  extensive  quarries  where  most  of  the  material 
was  obtained.'  The  city  wall  ran  outside  of  this  one,  sections- 
of  which  are  standing  seventy  feet  high  and  fifteen  thick,  en- 
tirely buried  with  rubbish. 

*  These  quarries,  known  as  the  Royal  Caverns,  are  vast  subterranean  excavation* 
under  Mount  Akra.  You  enter  them  near  the  Damascus  Gate,  and  can  stroll  for 
hours  from  hall  to  hall,  and  see  how  every  stone  was  quarried,  the  tools  used,  and 
how  the  blocks  were  broken  from  tlieir  natural  beds  by  the  expansion  of  woodeu 
wedges,  before  the  age  of  gunpowder  or  other  modern  appliances. 


THE   "STONE   OF    FOUNDATION."  151 

The  Temple  area  is  one  thousand  six  hundred  and  one  feet 
long  by  one  thousand  and  forty-two  wide ;  almost  double  its 
original  dimensions,  and  probably  as  enlarged  by  Herod  the 
Great,  and  the  same  as  when  Christ  walked  through  its  courts. 
Tiie  site  of  the  Lord's  house  was  connected  with  Solomon's 
palace  and  the  city  of  David  on  Mount  Zion  by  a  magnificent 
stone  bridge  over  the  Tyropceon  valley,  three  hundred  and  fifty 
feet  long,  fifty  wide,  and  one  hundred  and  ten  feet  high,  the 
remains  of  which  may  be  seen  in  the  engraving,  as  discovered 
by  Dr.  Robinson. 

Near  the  center  of  the  Temple  inclosure  is  a  raised  platform 
five  hundred  and  fifty  by  four  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  and  fif- 
teen high,  paved  with  marble,  the  slabs  resting  on  the  native 
rock.  This  is  considered  holy  ground,  and  all  visitors  are  here  ^ 
required  to  remove  their  shoes,  as  no  unholy  feet  are  allowed 
to  tread  this  marble  floor.  In  the  center  of  this  platform  a 
huge  irregular  piece  of  the  natural  limestone  rock,  perhaps 
fifty  feet  in  diameter  and  six  feet  above  the  pavement,  crops 
out  of  the  mountain  top,  inclosed  with  a  railing  tipped  with 
gold  lest  the  polluted  hand  of  man  should  touch  it.  This  rock, 
known  as  the  Sakhra,  according  to  the  Rabbinical  writers  is  the 
"Stone  of  Foundation" — the  first  work  of  creation,  next  the 
Temple  in  point  of  sacredness,  and  round  which  the  world  was 
formed.  Hence  the  legend  of  this  being  the  world's  center, 
and  Mount  Zion  the  holiest  spot  on  earth  and  the  perfection 
of  beauty.  It  will  be  remembered  that  David  first  brought  the 
Ark  of  the  Covenant  to  Mount  Zion,  and  when  it  was  removed 
to  the  Temple  after  its  completion  the  name  of  Zion  was  trans-  .  , 
ferred  with  the  Ark  to  Moriah,  which  will  account  for  this 
mountain  being  frequently  called  Zion. 

It  is  expressly  stated  in  the  Talmud  that  the  Ark  of  the 


152 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


Covenant  stood  upon  the  "Stone  of  Foundation."  It  is  also 
stated  tliat  David,  in  digging  the  foundation  for  the  Temple, 
came  upon  this  stone  over  the  mouth  of  the  abyss,  with  the 
ineffable  name  of  God  inscribed  upon  it.  This  stone  and  tlie 
topography  of  the  Temple  area  are  then  to  determine  the  site 
of  the  Lord's  house,  with  its  altars,  courts  and  other  append- 


NOBLE  CAVE,  UNDER  DOME  OF  THE  ROCK. 


From  the  Talmudic  account  we  learn  that  the  "  Stone 
of  Foundation "  was  the  solid  rock  and  highest  point  of  the 
mountain,  projecting  slightly  above  the  floor  of  the  Holy  of 
Holies,  and  that  the  Ark  of  the  Covenant  rested  upon  it ;  that 
from  this  rock  steps  led  down  to  the  floor  of  the  Temple,  wliich 
stood  on  a  solid  platform  six  cubits  above  the  general  level  of 
the  mountain,  and  that  the  platform  extended  all  round  the 


THE   ARK   OF  THE   COVEXANT.  153 

house,  with  steps  on  the  eastern  front  leading  down  to  a  still 
lower  court.  The  position  of  the  Sakhra  is  precisely  that  indi- 
cated in  the  Talmud,  and  is  the  onlj  spot  in  the  inclosure  that 
meets  all  the  requirements.  Locate  the  center  of  the  Holy  of 
Holies  on  tlie  center  of  this  rock,  and  it  agrees  in  a  wonderful 
manner  with  every  point  and  measurement  as  given  by  the 
Jewish  Rabbis.  And,  what  is  still  more  surprising,  with  the 
Temple  located  here,  a  line  drawn  through  the  center  from 
east  to  west  would  intersect  the  toj)  of  the  Mount  of  Olives  at 
the  very  point  tlie  red  heifer  is  supposed  to  have  been  sacri- 
ficed, and  a  person  standing  on  Olivet  at  that  point  can  look 
straight  over  the  wall,  through  the  dome  of  David's  judgment- 
seat,  and  the  eastern  door  of  the  Mosque  of  Omar,  and  see  a 
liglit  burning  on  the  rock. 

This  j)latform  was  probably  "  the  threshing-floor  of  Oman," 
and  the  large  grotto  under  the  rock,  the  cave  where  he  and  his 
four  sons  hid  themselves  from  the  angel  of  the  Lord.'  Isaiah 
appears  to  refer  to  this  same  stone  in  the  passage,  "  Behold,  I 
lay  in  Zion  for  a  foundation  a  stone,  a  tried  stone,  a  precious 
corner-stone." '  It  is  also  figuratively  applied  to  Christ,  who  is 
represented  as  the  "  Rock  of  our  salvation,"  and  "  chief  Corner- 
stone." 

The  Temple  constructed  by  Solomon,  B.  C.  1011,  out  of  the 
materials  collected  by  David,  and  after  the  model  furnished  by 
divine  Wisdom,  was  only  half  the  dimensions  of  Herod's,  but 
greatly  excelled  it  in  its  richer  decorations,  and  in  having  the 
real  Ark  of  the  Covenant,  with  the  Mercy-seat  and  Shckinah, 
and  Urini  and  Thummim,  which  the  second  Temple  did  not 
have ;  and  yet  "  the  glory  of  this  latter  house  was  greater  than 
iJie  former,"  being  honored  with  the  Saviour's  personal  presence, 

'  1  Cl:roiiic!o.s  xxi.  20.  -  Isaiah  xxviii,  IG. 


154:  BIBLE    LANDS. 

who  worshiped  in  its  courts,  and  officiated  as  our  Great  High- 
priest  at  its  altar. 

The  dedication  of  the  first  Temple  was  a  memorable  event 
in  the  history  of  God's  chosen  people.  The  vast  congregation 
of  Israel,  the  earnest  prayer  of  Solomon,  the  kindling  of  the 
holy  fire  upon  the  altar,  and  the  cloud  of  glory  which  tilled 
the  house,  rendered  it  an  occasion  never  to  be  forgotten.  This 
splendid  edifice,  after  standing  four  hundred  and  twenty-four 
years,  was  destroyed  by  Nebuchadnezzar,  and  most  of  its  wealth 
carried  with  the  Jews  to  Babylon.  But  no  mention  is  made 
of  the  Ark  of  the  Covenant  being  taken,  and  many  believe  it 
was  concealed  in  some  of  the  subterranean  vaults  of  the  Temple. 
Tradition  says  Jeremiah  hid  it  in  a  cave,'  and  as  neither  the 
gold  nor  stone  slabs  would  decay  it  is  not  unreasonable  to  sup- 
pose it  may  yet  be  found,  with  the  tables  of  the  law.  What  a 
discovery  that  would  be ! 

The  ark  was  not  in  the  second  Temple,  so  could  not  have 
been  among  the  trophies  carried  to  Rome ;  and,  in  proof  of  this, 
it  is  not  represented  in  the  sculpture  on  the  Arch  of^Titus  with 
the  other  articles  of  the  noble  sanctuary. 

After  the  captivity,  and  sixty-nine  years  after  the  destruction 
of  the  first  Temple,  the  house  of  the  Lord  was  rebuilt  on  the 
same  site  by  Zerubbabel,  and  one  of  the  most  interesting  dis- 
coveries lately  made  was  the  finding,  just  outside  the  double 
gate,  on  Ophel,  of  Haggai's  seal — the  prophet  divinely  commis- 
sioned, five  hundred  and  fifty  years  before  Christ,  to  have  the 
Lord's  house  restored.  How  strange,  to  pick 
np  a  private  seai  after  so  many  years!  perhaps 
dropped  by  its  owner  when  superintending  the 
haggai's  seal,     building  of  the  second  Temple.      This  house, 

'  2  Maccabees  ii,  5.  * 


MOiQUE   OF   OMAR.  157 

afterward  greatly  enlarged  and  beantiiied  by  Herod,  was  finally 
destroyed  by  the  Romans  under  Titus,  A.  D.  70.  The  founda- 
tions and  portions  of  the  walls  of  Solomon's  Temple  were,  no 
doubt,  used  in  the  construction  of  the  other,  as  they  are  fre- 
quently spoken  of  as  the  same  temple,  and  the  holy  place  was 
probably  the  same  in  both,  as  was  also  the  magnificent  Porch 
of  Solomon,  overlooking  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat. 

After  the  conquest  of  the  country  by  the  Mohammedans,  one 
of  the  first  acts  of  Calif  Omar  was  to  build  a  splendid  mosque, 
known  as  the  "  Donie  of  the  Rock,"  on  the  site  of  Jehovah's 
Temple.  This  edifice,  afterward  beautified  by  Calif  Abd  el 
Mar  wan,  still  crowns  the  summit  of  Moriah,  and  the  place  is 
regarded  by  the  Moslems  as  only  second  to  Mecca  in  point  of 
interest,  as  Mohammed  is  said  to  have  ascended  to  heaven  from 
here.  The  mosque  is  an  octagonal  building,  five  hundred  and 
tiiirty-six  feet  in  circumference,  surmounted  with  a  graceful 
dome  supported  bj'  twelve  exquisite  antique  marble  and  por- 
phyry columns.  Covering,  as  it  does,  simply  this  naked  rock, 
so  sacred  in  its  associations  to  Jew,  Christian,  and  Moham- 
medan, nothing  could  be  more  appropriate  or  grand.  It  is 
much  finer  than  St.  Sophia,  at  Constantinople,  or  St.  Mark's,  at 
Venice  ;  has  no  rival  for  grace  or  sanctity,  and  its  peculiar  shape 
is  the  only  reason  it  has  not  been  more  extensively  copied  ;  but 
as  a  shrine  for  the  "  rock  of  ages  "  it  is  perfectly  beautiful,  and 
when  the  sunshine  streams  through  its  fifty -six  gorgeous  win- 
dows, its  golden  mosaics  seem  to  kindle  up  with  a  divine  fire, 
rendering  the  spot  trul}'  glorious.  The  building  is  encased  on 
the  outside  with  encaustic  tiling  and  colored  marble ;  within,  it 
is  golden  arabesque  and  mosaic,  very  rich,  with  passages  from 
the  Koran  every-where  inserted  in  the  walls.  And,  what  is  re- 
markable, no  reference  is  made  in  the  inscriptions  to  David, 


158 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


Solomon,  or  Mohammed,  but  the  name  of  "  Jesus,  the  son  of 
Mary,"  is  mentioned  four  times.  Is  this  jDrophetic  of  it  becom- 
ing some  day  a  Christian  church  ? 

The  profound  repose  and  death-like  silence  of  this  Temple  is 
in  keeping  with  the  sacredness  of  the  place,  for  here  alone  in 
all  the  earth  was  the  only  living  and  true  God  worshiped 
throughout  long  ages !  When  Greece  was  ignorant  of  God, 
and  Rome  had  "  changed  the  glory  of  the  Incorruptible  into 


-7  - -:rt>'.■^•~>^^'-@<^ 


MOSQCE  OF    EL    AKSA. 


an  image  made  like  to  corruptible  man,"  the  descendants  of 
Abraham  on  this  mount  and  in  this  place  still  preserved  the 
writings  of  Moses,  and  the  worship  of  the  one  true  and  only 
God.  It  was  here  Solomon  erected  his  beautiful  Temple ;  here 
through  long  centuries  the  daily  sacrifice  was  offered,  and  God 
manifested  himself  to  his  people  in  the  mysterious  Shekinah 
as  nowhere  else  on  the  earth ;  here  first  were  sung  those  stir- 


REFLECTIONS.  159 

ring  psalms  of  David  which  ever  since  have  been  ascending 
like  incense  from  earth  to  heaven.  Toward  this  spot  God's 
people  in  every  age,  and  in  every  land,  have  turned  their  faces 
when  they  prayed  ;  and  it  was  here  the  Great  Teacher  himself 
taught  his  disciples,  wrought  his  miracles,  and  near  by,  on  Cal- 
vary, a  spur  of  the  same  mountain,  as  the  "  Lamb  of  God,"  was 
sacrificed  for  the  sins  of  the  world.  Surely,  "  This  is  none 
other  but  the  house  of  God  and  the  gate  of  heaven." 

At  the  southern  end  of  the  Haram  inclosure,  along  which 
Herod's  grand  cloister  extended,  is  the  Mosque  el  Aksa,  generally 
supposed  to  be  the  Church  of  the  Virgin  built  by  Justinian  in 
the  sixth  century.  It  is  a  large  edifice,  and  contains  some  beau- 
tiful mosaic  work  and  rare  mai'ble  columns,  many  of  them  now 
plastered  over.  During  the  occupancy  of  the  city  by  the  Cru- 
saders, Baldwin  II.  assigned  this  church  to  a  new  order  of 
knights  who,  from  this  circumstance,  were  called  Knight  Tem- 
plars, their  office  being  to  guard  the  holy  mount.  Xear  the 
entrance  to  this  mount  are  the  reputed  tombs  of  Aaron's 
sons,  and  a  few  steps  to  the  left,  "  The  Well  of  the  Leaf,"  or 
entrance  to  Paradise,  according  to  Mohammedan  tradition ;  and 
at  the  further  end  two  marble  columns,  standing  about  eight 
inches  apart,  called  the  "gate-posts  to  heaven,"  as  the  Moslems 
believe  no  one  can  enter  Paradise  without  first  passing  between 
these  pillars.  Having  alwaj-s  had  some  misgivings  on  this  sub- 
ject, I  concluded  to  settle  the  question  at  once,  so,  buttoning 
tightly  my  coat,  made  the  effort,  and  by  hard  squeeze ing  suc- 
ceeded, feeling  very  comfortable  over  the  matter.  There  was, 
however,  a  lady  with  me,  and  she  must  needs  try ;  and  try  she 
did,  but  failed,  and  again  and  again  she  tried,  and  as  often 
failed.  So  we  came  away  feeling  quite  sad,  she  at  her  failure, 
I  at  the  thouglit  of  going  to  heaven  without  my  wife. 


CHAPTER  V. 

GOLGOTHA  AND   TOMB   OF   CHRIST. 

Mount  Calvary— Traditional  Tomb  of  Christ— Arguments  in  Favor— Church  of  the 
Holy  Sepulcher — Constantine's  Basilica — Adam's  Grave — Late  Discoveries, 

rpWO  of  the  most  hallowed  spots  on  earth,  round  which  clus- 
-^  ter  our  brightest  hopes,  are  Golgotha  and  the  tomb  in 
which  it  is  claimed  the  body  of  Jesus  once  lay.  To  identify 
these  places  after  so  long  a  time  is  no  easy  task,  as  all  we  know 
in  reference  to  their  location  from  the  Scriptures  is,  that  they 
were  near  each  other  "  without  the  gate,"  and  "  nigh  to  the 
city." 

When  Constantine  the  Great  embraced  Christianity,  feeling 
moved  to  do  something  in  honor  of  his  divine  Master,  he  caused 
to  be  erected  over  the  then  supposed  sites  of  our  Lord's  passion 
and  burial,  magnificent  churches,  portions  of  which  still  re- 
main, somewhat  changed  in  form,  being  all  now  under  one 
roof,  and  known  as  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulcher,  but 
covering  the  same  sites  as  Constantine's  "House  of  Prayer" 
and  Grand  Basilica. 

This  venerable  edifice,  though  originally  designed  to  com- 
memorate but  the  two  great  events  of  the  Redeemer's  death 
and  resurrection,  has  been  greatly  abused  by  the  superstition 
of  mercenary  priests  and  monks  who  have  hud  charge  of  it  for 
centuries,  introducing  other  objects  of  doubtful  propriety,  hav- 
ing no  connection  with  the  place,  and  practicing  all  kinds  of 
fraud  on  the  ignorant  and  credulous  pilgrims  who  visit  by  thou- 
sands this  ancient  church.  We  deplore  as  much  as  any  one  pos- 
160 


;>1LK(.H    OF    lat    llULi'    Stl'LLCHhl. 


TRADITIONAL   TOMB   OF   CHRIST.  163 

sibly  can  the  abuse  and  desecration  of  so  sacred  a  spot,  but  this 
has  nothing  to  do  with  tlie  identity  of  the  two  places  referred 
to,  which,  after  a  residence  of  several  years  in  Jerusalem,  and  a 
careful  investigation  of  its  topography  and  the  results  of  recent 
explorations,  we  are  almost  convinced  are  the  veritable  Gol- 
gotha where  Christ  was  crucified,  and  the  rock-hewn  tomb 
from  which  on  the  morning  of  the  third  day  he  arose. 

As  80  much  has  been  written  upon  this  subject  we  can  only 
present  a  resume  of  the  arguments  advanced  by  Mr.  Williams, 
De  Yogue,  and  others,  in  support  of  the  authenticity  of  the  sites. 
Ko  one  can  doubt  for  a  moment  that  the  early  disciples  and 
apostles  were  acquainted  with  the  place  of  their  Master's  death 
and  burial ;  and  many  of  those  who  were  with  him  on  his  tri- 
umphal entry  into  the  city,  and  who  saw  the  darkened  heavens 
at  his  crucifixion,  must  certainly  have  known  the  site  of  Gol- 
gotha. Within  a  few  weeks  after  these  remarkable  events,  after 
the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  there  were 
three  thousand  Christians  in  Jerusalem.  Others  were  daily 
added  to  their  number,  and  a  Church  organized  at  once,  of 
which  James,  the  brother  of  our  Lord,  two  years  later,  was  cre- 
ated first  Bishop  ;  and  from  that  period  down  to  the  completion 
of  Constantine's  Church  of  the  Resurrection,  A.  D.  335,  there 
was  never  a  time  when  there  was  not  a  Christian  community  in 
the  city,  with  clergy,  membership,  and  all  the  ordinances  of  the 
Church.  And  can  any  one  suppose  that  during  this  period, 
when  the  religion  of  the  cross  was  conquering  the  world,  and 
thousands  from  distant  lands  were  visiting  the  Holy  City,  the 
locality  of  Calvary  and  the  tomb  of  Joseph  could  be  for- 
gotten ?  It  is  true  during  the  siege  of  Titus  many  of  the 
Christians  retired  to  Pella,  beyond  Jordan,  and  others  took  ref- 
uge in  the  caves  and  rock-tombs  along  the  Kedron ;  there,  liow- 
11 


164  BIBLE   LAXDS. 

ever,  were  many  aged  and  sick  and  poor  who  remained  in  the 
city.  Ensebius  says  that  not  more  than  half  the  population  left, 
and  most  of  those  who  left  returned  immediately  after  the 
siege  was  raised  ;  but  can  it  be  supposed  that  in  this  brief  in- 
terval of  less  than  five  months  the  place  before  all  others  dear 
to  them  would  be  lost  sight  of  ?  These  points  of  sacred  in- 
terest were  probably  so  well  known  to  Pagan,  Jew,  and  Chris- 
tian that  none  ever  called  them  in  question  any  more  than 
Mount  Zion,  Olivet,  or  Moriah,  and  the  events  connected  with 
them  by  this  time  had  become  items  of  history,  fixing  beyond 
controversy  their  locality. 

According  to  Jerome,  Eusebius,  and  other  historians,  the 
pagan  Emperor  Hadrian,  who  ascended  the  throne  A.  D.  117, 
as  an  insult  to  the  Jews  and  Christians,  and  that  he  might 
obliterate,  as  far  as  possible,  all  traces  of  their  religion,  changed 
the  name  of  the  city  to  ^lia  Capitolina,  rebuilt  and  dedicated 
the  temple  on  Moriah  to  Jupiter,  and  raised  over  the  tomb  of 
Christ  a  mound  of  earth,  erecting  thereon  a  shrine  to  Venus. 

After  Constantine's  conversion  he  sent  his  mother,  Helena,  in 
A.  D.  325,  when  near  fourscore  years  old,  on  a  visit  to  the  holy 
places,  and  when  she  reported  to  her  son  that  the  altar  of  Venus 
still  desecrated  the  site  of  the  Holy  Sepulcher,  the  Emperor  at 
once  wrote  to  Macarius,  Bishop  of  Jerusalem,  to  have  the  tem- 
ple of  Venus  and  mound  of  earth  removed,  and  to  build  upon 
the  spot,  at  the  expense  of  the  imperial  treasury,  a  grand 
Christian  church.  Portions  of  this  edifice  remain  to  the  present 
day,  and  its  very  crypt  is  still  used  as  a  cistern  by  the  Copts. 
In  this  imperial  order,  which  Eusebius  has  preserved,  no  doubt 
is  expressed  touching  the  site  ;  no  search  is  to  be  made  for  the 
tomb  ;  no  inquiry  instituted  in  reference  to  its  identity — that  is 
known  and  admitted  by  all ;  and  when  the  earth  was  removed 


CHURCH   OF   THE   HOLY   SEPULCHER. 


165 


in  presence  of  the  Empress  and  others,  the  cave  or  tomb  was 
found,  just  as  it  had  been  buried  two  centuries  before.  It  was 
the  recovery  of  the  Sepulcher,  and  not,  as  some  suppose,  the  find- 
ing of  the  true  cross — an  invention  of  after  years — that  Con- 
stantino regarded  as  so  "  miraculous ;"  and  it  was  in  celebration 
of  this  event,  and  as  a  memorial  of  the  passion  and  resurrec- 


TOMB    OF    CHRIST. 


tion  of  Christ,  that  he  erected  his  magnificent  Martyrium  or 
Basilica,  which  was  dedicated  with  great  pomp  in  the  year  335, 
in  presence  of  a  vast  assemblage  of  bishops  and  prelates  from 
every  province  in  the  Eoman  Empire.  This  Church  was 
stripped  of  all  its  wealth,  and  partly  destroyed,  by  the  Persians 
A.  D.  614,  but  was  immediately  rebuilt  on  the  old  foundations. 
It  was  doomed  again  to  destruction  by  the  Mohammedans  in 


166  BIBLE   LANDS. 

A.  D.  1010,  and  again  reconstructed  much  as  it  appears  to-day 
— the  lire  of  1808  not  changing  its  general  features. 

Tlie  present  edifice  is  a  collection  of  chapels  three  hundred 
and  fifty  feet  long  by  two  hundred  and  eighty  wide,  under  tlie 
same  roof.  The  sepulcher  is  an  old  Jewish  tomb  in  the  center 
of  the  rotunda  of  the  church,  encased  inside  and  out  with 
marble  from  four  to  six  inches  thick,  and  otherwise  richly 
decorated  ;  but  beneath  this  marble  is  an  original  tomb,  about 
six  and  a  half  feet  square,  cut  in  the  nativ^e  lime-stone  rock. 
The  bench,  or  loculus  for  the  corpse,  is  on  the  right  hand  of 
the  entrance,  three  feet  wide  and  eighteen  inches  above  the 
floor,  covered  with  a  white  marble  slab.  The  door  is  not  over 
three  feet  high,  so  that  a  person  looking  in  would  have  to  stoop 
in  order  to  see  where  the  body  lay,  agreeing  in  every  particular 
with  the  narrative  ;  and  there  can  be  but  little  doubt  that  this 
is  the  tomb  in  which  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  once  lay. 

Cyril,  a  native  of  Palestine,  and  Bishop  of  Jerusalem  in  the 
year  350,  speaks  of  the  sepulcher  and  rent  rocks  just  as  they 
now  appear.  All  the  fathers  of  the  Church  give  the  same 
testimony,  and  it  was  not  until  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth 
century  that  a  doubt  even  was  expressed  touching  the  locality. 
And  why  doubt  the  verit}'  of  this  site  ?  Is  there  any  thing 
improbable  about  it  ?  Any  thing  unworthy  of  credit  in  the 
universal  belief  of  the  Apostolic  Church  in  reference  to  this 
spot  ?  Were  not  the  Christians  of  the  first  and  second  centu- 
ries as  capable  of  determining  this  matter  as  their  brethren  of 
the  nineteenth  century,  few  of  whom  have  ever  visited  the 
place  ?  The  country,  under  the  Romans,  was  carefully  surveyed, 
and  a  record  made  of  the  boundaries  of  every  field.  So  there 
could  have  been  no  difficulty  in  determining  the  precise  locality 
of  Golgotha  and  the  garden  of  Joseph  of  Arimathea. 


ARGUMENTS    IX    FAVOR.  167 

About  the  only  objection  ever  raised  against  the  site  is  its 
location,  being  inside  the  city,  which  we  consider  one  of  the 
strongest  arguments  in  its  favor.  Would  the  early  Christians, 
with  the  Scriptures  in  their  possession  and  learned  men  to  ex- 
pound them,  have  selected  a  site  and  built  a  church  within  the 
city  to  commemorate  an  event  that  transpired  without  the  gates 
if  they  had  not  had  the  strongest  reasons  for  so  doing  ?  Or, 
if  a  pious  fraud  had  been  intended,  would  they  not  have  chosen 
a  site  outside  the  walls  ?  Then,  what  motive  could  they  have 
had  who  suffered  persecution,  torture,  and  even  death  for  the 
truth,  to  practice  such  an  imposition  upon  the  Church  and  the 
world?  Some  have  contended  for  the  knoll  over  Jeremiah's 
grotto,  outside  the  present  w^alls,  near  the  Damascus  gate,  but 
without  a  single  ai'gument  to  support  their  theory.  The  rocks 
of  this  knoll  all  lie  undisturbed  in  their  natural  beds,  there 
being  no  evidence  of  any  upheaval,  as  in  the  other  site,  and  at 
the  time  of  the  crucifixion  there  could  have  been  no  such 
mound  here,  it  being  a  part  of  a  rocky  ridge  cut  through  and 
used  as  a  stone-quan-y  when  the  modern  wall  was  built,  as  may 
be  seen  by  the  old  tombs,  cisterns,  and  aqueducts  left  exposed 
by  these  later  excavations. 

A  late  survey  of  the  rock  formation  underlying  the  city  re- 
moves every  topographical  objection  to  the  traditionary  locality, 
and  reveals  the  fact,  not  known  before,  that  Golgotha  was 
really  an  eminence,  a  spur  of  Akra  running  out  into  the  Tyro- 
poeon  valley,  at  least  ninety  feet  in  its  present  condition  above 
the  natural  surface  at  its  base,  showing  clearly  that  Calvary 
was  a  mount  with  precipitous  sides  facing  the  south :  a  very 
important  point.  It  was  also  discovered  that  this  was  an 
ancient  place  of  burial,  several  old  Jewish  tombs  being  found, 
and  that  the  roeks  were  rent  as  with  an  earthquake,  which  is 


168  BIBLE    LANDS. 

not  true  of  any  other  ridge  about  Jerusalem :  another  impor- 
tant point.  Many  of  tliese  tombs  were  cut  away  to  make  room 
for  Constantino's  church,  and  in  one  place  the  old  wall  of  this 
church  runs  directly  through  a  catacomb  in  which  we  counted 
seven  loculi  all  more  ancient  than  the  Holy  Sepulcher,  which 
was  a  new  tomb:  In  front  of  one  the  stone  slab  was  still 
lying  that  closed  the  door,  showing  that  it  had  once  been  occu- 
pied and  probably  opened  at  the  time  of  Christ's  resurrection ; 
and,  from  the  hollow  sound  when  striking  on  the  natural  rock 
floor,  there  are  evidently  other  tombs  below.  Could  these  be 
the  graves  from  which  the  saints  arose  ?  Some  of  these  tombs, 
as  those  back  of  the  Holy  Sepulcher,  have  long  been  known 
as  the  graves  of  Nicodemus,  Gamaliel,  and  Joseph,  and  one 
under  Calvary  as  that  of  Adam !  Those  who  may  feel  dis- 
posed to  smile  at  this  last  statement  had  better  first  account  for 
the  tradition,  which  is  older  than  our  era,  that  Golgotha  de- 
rived its  name  from  Adam's  skull  or  tomb  being  there,  and 
that  Christ,  the  second  Adam,  was  to  die  and  bring  "  immor- 
tality to  light "  on  the  spot  where  the  first  Adam,  who  brought 
death  and  ruin  into  our  world,  was  buried  ;  and  the  liuman 
skull  in  all  old  paintings  of  the  crucifixion  is  designed  to 
symbolize  the  grave  of  Adam  at  the  foot  of  the  cross.  The 
importance  of  the  discovery  of  these  tombs,  in  the  settlement 
of  this  question,  cannot  be  overrated.  It  proves  conclusively 
that  this  locality  was  outside  of  the  city  at  the  time  of  the 
crucifixion,  as  the  Jews  were  not  allowed  to  bury  within  the 
city,  and  that  these  old  Jewish  tombs  must  be  prior  to  that 
event ;  and  also,  that  from  the  time  of  the  construction  of 
Agrippa's  wall,  A.  D.  45,  down  to  the  building  of  the  Church 
of  the  Resurrection,  the  place,  for  some  reason,  must  have  been 
carefully  guarded,  if  not  covered  over  with  earth,  or  these 


PILGRIMS   VISITING    THE    TOMB.  169 

tombs  would  not  have  been  preserved  in  their  perfect  condition 
for  three  centuries  within  the  city  walls. 

These  researches  further  show  that  the  second  waH  could  not 
have  inclosed  the  site  of  the  Holy  Sepulcher  without  crossing 
the  sloping  sides  of  Akra ;  and  if  the  wall  had  run  over  this 
ridge,  as  Dr.  liobinson  contends,  traces  of  it  would  be  found  in 
the  scarped  rock,  and  there  would  have  been  a  fosse  on  the 
outside,  as  every- where  else  along  the  old  wall,  otherwise 
the  hill  to  the  west  would  have  commanded  it ;  but  there  is 
nothing  anywhere  to  indicate  that  the  wall  ever  ran  in  this 
direction.  The  gate  of  Gennath,  from  which  the  second  wall 
started,  must  have  been  about  midway  between  the  Tower  of 
Hippicus  and  the  Temple  inclosure,  as  may  be  seen  by  refer- 
ence to  our  plan  of  Jerusalem.  There  is  no  evidence  that 
the  reputed  Pool  of  Hezekiah  is  the  work  of  that  king.  It 
probably  was  built  by  Herod  the  Great,  and  has  nothing  to 
do  with  the  settlement  of  this  site,  which  seems  to  be  as  fully 
established  as  an}'  thing  can  be  short  of  actual  demonstration. 
It  would  be  presumption  to  fix  upon  the  identical  spot  where 
the  Cross  was  planted  ;  but  to  doubt  the  identity  of  the  tomb 
would  be  to  falsify'  all  history,  and  render  ridiculous  the  devo- 
tion of  the  pious  millions  who  have  knelt  and  prayed  and  wept 
at  this  sacred  shrine.  For  more  than  eighteen  centuries  pil- 
grims from  all  lands  have  been  visiting  this  tomb.  For  these 
eighteen  hundred  years  the  dying  in  distant  climes  have  turned 
their  pale  faces  toward  this  spot,  and  expired  with  the  vision  of 
the  Resurrection  before  their  eyes.  For  long  centuries  kings 
and  queens,  sages  and  statesmen,  heroes  and  philosophers — the 
mighty  and  lowly  of  earth — have  been  coming  to  pay  their 
vows  and  drop  a  tear  upon  the  rock  where,  as  the\'  believe,  the 
body  of  Jesus  once  lay ;  and  we  do  not  envy  the  man  who  can 


170 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


mark  unmoved  the  zeal  and  love  and  faith,  thouo:h  mixed  with 
superstition,  of  these  devoted  Cliristians,  Some,  when  they 
enter  the  rotunda,  stand  for  hours  gazing  intently  on  the  tomb, 
counting  themselves  unworthy  to  enter.  Others  remove  their 
shoes,  and  on  tlieir  knees  go  in,  kissing  reverentially  the  cold 
stone ;  and  all  seem  to  look  upon  the  place  as  the  holiest  spot 
on  earth. 


POOL  OP  HEZEKIAU,   ANU  UUMJb;  OVEU  THE  TOMB  OF  CHRIST. 

A  new  graceful  bronze  dome  with  golden  ribs  has  lately 
been  constructed  over  the  rotunda  that  encircles  the  Holy 
Sepulcher,  a  good  view  of  which,  with  Hezekiah's  pool  in  the 
foreground,  is  given  by  our  artist  from  Mr.  Ilornstein's  Medi- 


DOME  OVER  THE  TOMB  OF  CHRIST. 


171 


terranean  Plotel,  near  tlie  Jaffa  Gate,  This  dome  is  surmounted 
by  a  golden  cross,  and  the  one  over  the  Mosque  of  Omar  on 
Mount  Moriah  by  a  golden  crescent.  On  a  clear  evening, 
when  the  sun  goes  down  in  splendor,  the  effect  on  these  two 
gilded  domes  is  beautiful.  At  first,  both  are  seen  dazzling  in 
the  sunlight,  but  as  the  sun  declines  the  shadows  first  fall  on 
the  crescent,  and  long  after  the  shades  of  twilight  have  cast  a 
gloom  over  the  city  the  sun's  last  lingering  rays  may  still  be 
seen  reflected  from  the  golden  cross  over  the  tomb  of  Christ. 


KJMB    UF    AAHO.V. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

ROYAL   SEPULCHER   OF   THE    HOUSE   OF   DAVID. 

Ancient  Rock-hewn  Tombs — Old  Jewish  Tombs — Natives  Use  them  as  Dwellings — 
Tombs  of  the  Patriarchs,  Prophets,  Kings — Sepulcher  of  David  on  Mount 
Zion — Tomb  of  Joshua — St.  Stephen — Eudocia. 

rpHE  oldest  and  most  reliable  remains  of  Jewish  antiquity  in 
Palestine  are  the  rock-hewn  tombs  found  scattered  all  over 
the  country.  In  the  vicinity  of  large  cities  like  Jerusalem,  the 
mountain  sides  are  perforated  with  these  sepulchral  caves,  many 
of  them  occupied  by  the  poor  natives  and  their  flocks.  In 
some  districts  half  the  population  live  in  these  tombs  of  their 
ancestors. 

As  a  nation  the  Hebrews  seem  to  have  been  very  particular 
about  the  place  of  their  burial.  A  tent  might  answer  to  live 
in,  but  their  place  of  burial  must  be  a  rock-bound  tomb ;  and 
it  is  rather  remarkable  that  the  first  business  transaction  re- 
corded in  the  affairs  of  this  world  should  be  the  purchase  by 
Abraham  of  the  Cave  of  Machpelah  for  a  family  tomb.  And 
how  touch ingly  beautiful  the  dying  charge  of  the  Patriarch 
Jacob,  "  Bury  me  with  my  fathers  in  the  cave  which  is  in  the 
field  of  Ephron  the  Hittite,  in  the  cave  that  is  in  the  field  of 
Machpelah,  which  is  before  Mamre,  in  the  land  of  Canaan. 
There  they  buried  Abraham,  and  Sarah  his  wife;  there  they 
buried  Isaac,  and  Rebekah  his  wife;  and  there  I  buried 
Leah."^  Likewise  Joseph,  when  taking  leave  of  his  brethren, 
exacted   with  all    the   solemnity  of  an  oath  the  promise,  that 

172  '  Genesis  xlix,  29-31. 


KOCK-UEW^f    TOxMBS. 


173 


when  tliej  returned  to  Canaan  tliej  would  surely  carry  his 
bones  with  them  "  up  out  of  Egypt,"  which  they  did  some  two 
hundred  years  after,  and  bm-ied  them  in  the  parcel  of  ground 
given  him  by  his  father  at  Shechem,  where  his  grave  may  still 
be  seen,  a  few  minutes'  walk  from  Jacob's  "Well. 

It  appears  to  have  been  a  prevailing  custom  among  the  Jews 
for  every  head  of  a  family  to  secure  a  place  of  burial  for  liim- 
self  and  descendants.     Some  of  these  tombs,  as  those  of  the 


TOMB  OF  THE  JCDGES. 


judges,  prophets,  kings,  and  others,  are  vast  excavations  in  the 
solid  rock,  composed  of  numerous  apartments  cut  out  with  great 
skill,  and  very  similar  to  the  Egyptian  tombs.  Ko  lock  was 
ever  invented  more  ingenious  in  its  combinations  than  the  orig- 
inal entrance  to  the  reputed  tomb  of  Helena,  Queen  of  Adia- 
bene,  generally  called  the  "  Tomb  of  the  Kings,"  but  more 
probably  of  the  Herodian  family.  "We  think  it  could  be  easily 
shown,  as  stated  by  Pausanias,  "that  the  door  opened  of  its 


174 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


own  accord  once  a  year,"  by  a  very  simple  hydraulic  arrange- 
ment.' 

There  is  no  difficiilty  in  determining  these  Jewish  tombs. 
They  are  all  as  distinct  from  the  Greek,  Roman,  and  Christian, 
as  different  orders  of  architecture  could  possibly  be.  In  the  more 
ancient  and  common,  the  graves  are  sunken  in  the  floor  or  cut 
horizontally,  like  ah  oven  or  pigeon-hole,  in  the  sides  of  the 
chamber  or  face  of  a  natural  cliff.     The  others  have  a  shelf  or 


INTERIOR  OK   ROCK-HEWX    TOMIi. 


bench  along  the  end  wall  or  side,  on  which  the  corpse  was  laid, 
as  in  the  Holy  Sepulcher.  Sometimes  this  shelf,  or  loculus,  was 
cut  out  like  a  trough,  of  sufficient  depth  to  receive  the  body, 
which  was  then  covered  with  a  flat  stone  or  marble  slab.  All 
these  tombs  are  anterior  to  our  era.  Some  have  Hebrew  in- 
scriptions upon  them,  and  the  reputed  tomb  of  Christ  being  of 
this  kind,  together  with  the  other  ancient  graves  recently  dis- 
covered under  the  foundations  of  Constantine's  Church  of  the 

'  During  the  spring  rains  a  float  in  the  vestibule  cistern  would  remove  a  key  that 
held  in  position  a  circular  stone  that  closed  the  entrance,  which  at  once,  of  its 
ovm  weight,  would  roll  back,  and  the  door  open  of  its  own  accord. 


ANCIENT   JEWISH    TOMBS. 


175 


Resurrection,  is  a  strong  argument  in  favor  of  the  traditional 
Holy  Sepulcher.  In  some  of  these  tombs  small  receptacles  are 
found,  as  if  designed  for  children,  yet  containing  the  bones  of 
adults,  and  appear  to  have  been  used  to  deposit  the  remains  or 
skeletons  in  after  they  had  fallen  to  pieces,  perhaps  to  make 
room  for  fresh  corpses.  Thus,  the  dead  "  were  gathered  unto 
their  fathers." 


JOSEPH'S   TOMB    AND    MOCXT    GERIZIM. 


The  identity  of  any  particular  tomb  in  the  absence  of  inscrip- 
tions after  the  lapse  of  so  many  centuries  is  exceedingly  diffi- 
cult ;  still,  as  in  that  of  the  patriarchs  and  of  Rachel,  of  Joseph 
and  of  David  and  others,  there  is  no  room  for  skepticism. 
The  Scriptures  are  very  explicit  in  their  account  of  David  com- 
ing up  from  Hebron  and  taking  the  strong  "  Castle  of  Zion," 
and  building  the  new  City  of  David  round  about  the  old  for- 
tress of  the  Jebusites.  Zion  henceforth  became  his  royal  resi- 
dence, and  when  Israel's  great  king  closed  his  eventful  reign  of 


176  BIBLE   LANDS. 

forty  years  it  is  written,  "  he  was  buried  in  the  City  of  David," ' 
and  so  it  is  said  of  Solomon  liis  son,  and  of  twelve  of  their  suc- 
cessors to  tlie  throne.  They  were  all  buried  in  "the  City  of 
David  "  on  Mount  Zion,  "  which  is  Jerusalem." 

On  the  highest  summit  of  Zion,  where,  according  to  all  his- 
tory and  tradition,  "Israel's  sweet  singer"  reigned,  died,  and 
was  buried,  there  is  an  old  church  and  convent  known  as  Neby 
Daud,  or  the  Tomb  of  the  Prophet  David,  which  in  all  proba- 
bility covers  the  sepulchral  caverns  of  the  kings  of  Israel. 
After  the  Captivity,  when  Nehemiah  was  rebuilding  the  walls 
of  Jerusalem,  he  refers  to  the  "sepulchers  of  David"  being 
still  there,  which  agrees  precisely  with  this  locality,  and  "  the 
stairs  that  go  down  from  the  City  of  David," "  cut  in  the  living 
rock,  may  still  be  seen  here.  Josephus  also  makes  mention  of 
the  same  fact,  and  locates  the  tomb  on  Mount  Zion  about  this 
point.  And  Peter,  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  reminds  the  Jews 
that  the  sepulcher  of  David,  their  great  prophet,  was  with 
them  unto  that  day.  From  Cyril,  Bishop  of  Jerusalem,  and 
others,  we  learn  that  there  was  a  building,  known  as  the  Church 
of  the  Apostles,  standing  on  or  near  this  spot  in  the  fourth 
century,  and  said  to  be  the  only  edifice  within  the  city  not 
destroyed  by  Titus.  The  foundations  of  the  present  building 
are  evidently  of  great  antiquity,  the  beveled  stones  having 
originally  been  laid  without  mortar,  being  held  together  with 
stone  knobs  and  sockets,  and  the  old  capitals  on  the  pillars  and 
other  fragments  of  sculpture  are  clearly  of  Jewish  origin,  having^ 
on  them  the  vine  with  foliage  and  clusters  of  grapes,  so  peculiar 
to  that  people,  with  other  marks  of  Jewish  workmanship. 

Over  the  reputed  tomb  on  the  second  floor  of  this  old  Chris- 
tian Church,  now  a  Mohammedan  mosque,  is  an  upper  room 

'  1  Kings  ii,  10.  'Nehemiah  iii,  15,  16. 


THE    CCENACULUM. 


177 


forty-five  by  thirty  feet,  with  groined  ceiling  supported  by 
twelve  granite  and  marble  antique  columns,  which  for  at  least 
fifteen  centuries  has  been  known  as  the  Coenaculum,  or  "  upper 
room,"  where  the  last  supper  was  instituted,  and  where  the 
Holy  Ghost  was  poured  out  upon  the  disciples  on  the  day  of 
Pentecost.     The  pVdce  overflows  with  thought!     "What  mem- 


WIBT. 


■WOMEN'S  OAH.ERY. 

■ — ir 4j — 


rj>PJEB  ROOM 


^S  X  30 


OROINED  CEILIITO 
12  COLUMNS 


^ 


1 


..j: 


ANTZ-BOOM 


Q    CISTtRN 
LOWER        TERRACa 


STEPS  TO    TERRACE 
FROM  'WHICH  YOtT  ENTER 
UPPER  TERRACE- 


OPEN  COURT. 


PLAN  OF  THE  UPPER  ROOM,   OTER  T0M15  OF  DAVID. 

A  and  B.  Remains  of  two  small  minarets,  right  and  left  of  original  entrance,  now  closed 
C.  Stairs  leading  to  lower  apartments  and  the  Royal  Sepulcher  of  David.  No.  1.  Red  granite 
column  with  Jewish  capital.  No.  2.  Gray  granite  column  with  Grecian  capital,  very  fine. 
No.  3.  Exquisite  marble  column  of  the  Roman  order,  the  capital  richly  sculptured  with  birds  and 
animals  among  the  foliage.  A  belt  course  or  frieze  runs  round  the  room  at  the  spring  of  the  arch, 
of  Jewish  workmanship,  and  very  beautiful,  showing  the  vine  and  clusters  of  grapes. 

ories  it  awakens  !  But  no  words  can  describe  the  emotions  expe- 
rienced by  the  devout  mind  on  first  entering  that  "  upper  room.'* 
That  this  is  the  site  of  the  City  of  David  none  will  deny,  as 
the  remains  of  the  old  citadel  and  walls  and  towers  clearly  at- 
test, and  as  the  excavations  lately  made  on  Zion  by  that  enthu- 
siastic   Christian    archaeologist,    Mr.    Henry   Maudslay,   fully 


178  BIBLE   LANDS. 

demonstrate.  That  there  are  great  caverns  under  this  portion 
of  Mount  Zion  there  can  be  no  question,  having  myself  ex- 
plored them  in  part.  And  that  the  royal  sepulchers  of  the 
kings  of  Israel,  entered  and  robbed  by  Hyrcanus  and  Herod  the 
Great,  if  not  here,  are  very  near  this  locality,  there  can  be  but 
little  doubt.  Beyond  this,  until  further  explorations  are  made, 
nothing  can  be  deiinitely  known.  I  visited  this  interesting 
place  early  one  morning  during  the  Passover,  and  was  sur- 
prised to  find  a  large  number  of  Jews,  men  and  women,  weep- 
ing and  praying  against  the  eastern  face  of  the  old  wall  just 
outside  the  crypt,  not  being  allowed  to  enter  the  tomb  of  their 
own  prophet  and  king ;  at  the  same  time  I  could  hear  the  Mo- 
hammedans at  prayers  within.  Rather  a  novel  sight — Jews 
without,  Moslems  within,  and  Christian  looking  oji. 

This  is  considered  one  of  the  most  sacred  localities  about 
Jerusalem  by  all  religionists.  No  place  is  guarded  more 
jealously  by  the  Turk,  and  only  good  Moslems  are  permitted  to 
enter  the  vault  that  contains  the  cenotaph  of  the  royal  prophet. 
Having  long  had  a  desire  to  visit  this  mysterious  crypt,  about 
which  I  had  heard  the  most  fabulous  tales,  and  being  familiar 
with  the  dialect  of  the  land — for  whatever  it  may  have  been  of 
old  backsheesh  is  the  language  of  Canaan  now — I  succeeded 
one  midnight  hour,  when  the  guards,  were  asleep,  in  gaining 
admission  into  these  forbidden  parts.  It  was  a  perilous  under- 
taking, and  I  knew  my  life  was  in  jeopardy  every  moment. 
Going  down  seventeen  stone  steps  in  the  south-west  corner 
of  the  upper  room,  I  was  landed  in  a  chamber  the  size  of  the 
one  above — a  kind  of  chapel  or  mosque  for  common  pilgrims — 
from  which,  through  a  grated  window  hung  with  thousands 
of  votive  offerings,  can  be  seen  what  is  termed  the  tomb. 
This  room  communicates  with  another,  a  kind  of  ante-room 


TOMB    OF   DAVm. 


179 


with  a  niche  for  prayer,  in  front  of  which  stood  two  large 
brass  candlesticks,  and  in  the  corner  on  the  left  several  flags 
and  devices,  such  as  are  carried  on  pilgrimages.  Between  this 
ante-room  and  the  next,  which  is  the  scmctum,  sanctorum — a 
vaulted  room  twenty-five  feet  square  with  walls  of  great  thick- 
ness— there  are  double  doors,  the  outer  one  iron  with  strong 
bolts,  the  inner,  wood,  overhung  with  a  black  velvet  curtain 


TOMB  OF    DAVID. 


embroidered  with  silver.  The  cenotaph  extends  almost  across 
the  crypt  from  east  to  west  on  the  north  side.  It  is  built  of 
common  stone,  nicely  dressed,  about  five  feet  high,  with  a 
square  marble  slab  in  front,  and  an  oval  porphyry  one  on  top, 
the  whole  covered  with  a  green  velvet  canopy  or  pall,  with 
black  border  richly  wrought  in  gold ;  and  directly  in  front,  on 
a  black  velvet  ground  in  Arabic  characters,  is  the  following 

I  ^ 


180  BIBLE    LANDS. 

passage  from  the  Koran,  also  embroidered  in  gold  :  "  O  David  ! 
verily  thou  art  a  sovereign  prince  in  the  earth." 

The  marble  floor  was  covered  with  Persian  rugs.  The  walls 
were  cased  with  blue  encaustic  tiling,  and  the  vault  lighted  dimly 
by  six  lamps  suspended  from  the  ceiling,  and  two  very  large 
silver  candlesticks,  one  at  either  end  of  the  tomb,  rendering  the 
place  awfully  solemn.  But  the  most  interesting  part  of  this 
venerable  edifice  is  a  door  with  an  oval  top  on  the  left  of  the 
shrine,  now  closed  securely  with  masonry.  In  a  little  niche 
by  the  side  of  it  a  lamp  is  kept  always  burning,  and  the  most 
frightful  stories  are  told  of  persons  being  struck  with  blindness 
in  attempting  to  enter  this  door,  and  of  others  being  consumed 
by  fire — probably  fire-damp — bursting  out  of  the  cavern  be- 
low ;  and,  in  consequence,  the  door  was  walled  up  many  years 
ago,  in  all  probability  the  very  door  that  leads  to  the  royal 
catacombs  of  the  kings  of  Israel.  Over  this  closed  entrance 
there  is  an  Arabic  inscription  to  the  effect,  "  This  is  the  gate 
to  heaven,"  or  "  the  door  to  paradise,"  but  alas  !  it  is  closed. 
Closed  by  Mohammedan  superstition.  Ah  !  could  we  but  open 
that  door,  and  get  down  into  the  grotto  below,  and  be  permitted 
to  gaze  upon  the  gold  and  silver  coffins  of  God's  own  chosen 
kings,  and  find  there  the  golden  harp  on  which  David  played 
his  immortal  psalms,  what  a  discovery  it  would  be!  How 
much  speculation  it  would  remove !  and  how  many  points  it 
would  establish  in  the  topography  of  the  Holy  City  I  But  we 
must  wait. 

"  God  is  his  own  interpreter, 
And  he  will  make  it  plain." 

An  interesting  discovery  has  lately  been  made  at  ancient 
Timnath-serah,  the  heritage  of  Joshua,  in  the  supposed  tomb 
of  Joshua  the  son   of  Nun.     It  differs  from   the  other  rock 


TOMB    OF   JOSHUA. 


181 


tombs  in  the  vicinity  by  having  a  vestibule  in  front,  supported 
by  two  columns,  portions  of  the  natural  rock,  with  a  fillet  run- 
ning round  them  after  the  Egyptian  style.  In  this  vestibule 
there  are  two  or  three  hundred  niches  for  lamps,  indicating 
that  it  was  the  tomb  of  no  ordinary  person.  Back  of  this  ves- 
tibule are  two  chambers,  one  containing  fifteen  receptacles,  the 
other  but  one.  The  latter  is  supposed  to  be  Joshua's,  the 
former  his  family  vault ;  and  in  proof  of  this  supposition  many 
flint-knives  were  here  found,  such  as  were  used  in  circumcising 


JEWISH    ROCK-CUT    TOMBS. 


the  children  of  Israel  after  they  crossed  the  Jordan,  and  simi- 
lar to  those  discovered  at  Gilgal,  their  first  camping-place  in  the 
Land  of  Promise. 

Another  beautiful  tomb  was  discovered  a  short  time  since, 
about  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards  north  of  the  Damascus  gate. 
In  digging  a  cistern  at  this  point  the  workmen  came  upon  sev- 
eral sepulchral  vaults,  in  one  of  which  was  found  a  large  stone 
chest  or  coffin,  containing  human  remains.     It  measured  seven 


182 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


feet  seven  inches  in  length,  by  two  feet  eight  inches  in  width, 
and  was  three  feet  two  inches  high,  standing  on  four  feet 
in  the  center  of  the  chamber.  As  no  name  or  inscription  was 
found  in  the  crypt  by  which  it  could  be  identified,  it  is  impos- 
sible to  tell  to  whom  this  stately  tomb  belonged ;  but,  as  near 
this,  if  not  on  the  very  spot,  once  stood  the  grand  Church  of 
St.  Stephen,  on  the  supposed  site  of  that  holy  man's  martyr- 
dom, and  as  the  beautiful  and  accomplished  Empress  Eudocia, 
died  and  was  buried  here,  may  not  this  sarcophagus  be  the 
tomb  of  the  unfortunate  wife  of  Theodosius  II.,  if  not  that  of 
St.  Stephen  himself,  who  was  re-interred  here  by  that  empress! 
These  tombs  are  every-where  found.  They  cover  the  face 
of  the  Holy  Land.  In  them  sleep  the  dust  of  the  most  eminent 
men  that  ever  lived;  of  whom,  liowever,  nothing  more  can 
be  known  until  the  earth  delivers  up  her  dead. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


EASTER     FESTIVITIES. 


Arrival  of  Pilgrims — Religious  Fanaticism — Solemn  Mockeries  —  Ceremony  of 
Feet- washing — Dramatizing  the  CruciUxion — Baptism  of  Fire — Other  Shock- 
ing Scenes. 

IN  the  center  of  the  Greek  Chapel,  in  front  of  the  tomb  of 
Christ,  a  small  marble  globe  on  a  low  pedestal  is  pointed 
out  as  the  center  of  the  world.  Many  visitors  laugh  heartily 
at  the  idea,  but  is  it  not  as  near  the  center  as  any  other  spot  on 
the  earth's  surface  ?  For  centuries  Jerusalem  was  regarded  as 
the  world's  center  of  wealth,  power,  intelligence,  and  popula- 
tion, and  all  degrees  of  latitude  and  longitude,  and  all  astro- 
nomical calculations,  were  reckoned  from  this  center.  It  was 
also  the  great  center  of  religious  influence,  and  is  still  the  moral 
center,  and  ever  will  be,  round  which  the  dearest  hopes  and 
affections  of  our  race  revolve.  Thousands  of  pilgrims  from  all 
lands  are  constantly  coming  and  going.  Many  save  up  their 
money  for  half  a  life-time  in  order  to  make  this  journey.  The 
very  stones  are  worn  smooth  with  their  kisses  and  tears ;  and 
yet,  with  all  this  devotion,  which  we  cannot  but  admire,  there 
is  very  little  true  religion. 

Just  now  we  are  in  the  midst  of  the  Eafeter  festivities,  which 
attract  vast  multitudes.  The  city  is  crowded  with  strangers, 
and  the  hills  outside  the  walls  are  white  with  their  tents,  look- 
ing as  if  we  were  invested  by  a  besieging  army.  The  arrival 
of  these  caravans  is  quite  exciting ;  processions  go  out  to  meet 
them,  and  with  music,  dancing,  and  waving  banners   they  are 

183 


184  BIBLE   LANDS. 

escorted  into  tlie  Holy  City.  Those  from  Russia,  Mecca  and 
Persia  attract  the  greatest  attention. 

As  I  write,  a  procession  is  passing,  witli  a  man  standing  bare- 
footed on  the  sharp  edge  of  a  sword.  Of  course  there  is  some 
deception ;  either  the  feet  are  well  protected,  or  the  sword  not 
very  sharp.  Others  pretend  to  thrust  swords  and  daggers 
through  different  parts  of  their  bodies,  and  others  again  to  eat 
lire  withont  being  burned,  all  of  which  is  regarded  by  the  super- 
stitious as  miraculous.  One  of  the  dervishes  has  just  come 
into  the  Consulate  with  a  sword  run  through  his  face  from 
near  the  right  ear  and  out  of  his  mouth,  to  the  great  amaze- 
ment of  the  natives  ;  but  on  examination  I  found  that  the 
cheek  had  been  previously  pierced,  and  allowed  partially  to 
heal  up,  the  opening  being  concealed  by  his  black  heavy  beard. 

f 

This  deception  we  can  account  for  among  the  ignorant  Mussul- 
mans ;  but  how  are  we  to  excuse  even  greater  mockeries  when 
practiced  by  professing  Christians  ? 

The  Easter  services  began  by  the  ancient  and  very  curious 
ceremony  of  feet- washing.  A  platform  gorgeously  decorated 
was  constructed  in  the  open  court  in  front  of  the  Church  of 
the  Holy  Sepulcher,  on  which  were  seated  the  Greek  Patriarch, 
personating  Christ,  and  twelve  Bishops,  representing  the  twelve 
apostles.  After  reading  a  portion  of  the  Gospel  relating  to 
Christ  washing  the  disciples'  feet,  the  Patriarch,  in  imitation 
of  our  Lord,  went  a  short  distance  with  three  of  his  disciples, 
and  knelt  down,  as  if  in  prayer,  under  an  olive-tree  planted 
there  for  the  occasion.  After  a  few  minutes  he  returned 
to  the  stage,  and,  taking  off  his  outer  robe,  proceeded  to 
wash  and  kiss  the  feet  of  the  pretended  apostles.  The 
looks  of  Judas  rather  betrayed  him  during  this  operation, 
and  Peter  at  first  hesitated,  then  refused  to  submit  to  such 


DRAMATIZING    THE    CRUCIFIXION.  185 

an  act  on  the  part  of  the  Lord,  but  finally  was  persuaded  to 
yield. 

The  vessel  used  for  the  purpose  was  a  basin  of  pure  gold, 
very  large,  and  richly  chased.  "When  this  ceremony  was  con- 
cluded Judas  stealthily  retired,  and  the  Patriarch,  with  a  bunch 
of  hyssop,  sprinkled  the  vast  assemblage  with  the  water  that 
remained,  all  manifesting  the  greatest  eagerness  to  catch  if  but 
a  drop :  some  turning  up  their  faces,  others  baring  their 
breasts,  in  hope  that  a  drop  of  the  holy  water  might  fall  upon 


them.  When  this  service  ended,  a  rush  was  made  for  the 
olive-tree,  supposed  to  possess  rare  healing  qualities,  the  super- 
stitious believing  that  a  leaf  or  twig  burned  in  a  sick  chamber 
would  recover  the  patient  immediately.  The  scene  at  this 
moment  was  frightful  to  behold,  thousands  of  infatuated  men 
and  women  rushed  pell-mell  upon  the  tree,  till  not  a  branch  or 
leaf  remained,  not  even  a  trace  of  the  tree,  so  completely  was 
it  destroyed;  and  had  Judas  not  escaped  when  h^  did,  he  too 
would  have  shared  a  similar  fate. 

In  this  same  church,  on  the  following  evening,  an  exhibition 


186  BIBLE    LANDS. 

took  place  almost  as  shocking  as  that  witnessed  very  near  the 
same  spot  eighteen  centuries  before.  Christ  in  effigy  was  nailed 
to  a  cross  and  crucified  afresh  in  the  presence  of  an  excited 
multitude,  that  could  only  be  kept  under  control  by  the  pres- 
ence of  a  strong  guard  of  Turkish  soldiers  detailed  for  the  pur- 
pose. After  hanging  for  an  hour  or  more,  during  which  time 
all  the  scenes  of  the  crucifixion  were  re-enacted,  the  nails  were 
drawn  from  the  hands  and  feet,  the  crown  of  thorns  removed 
from  the  head,  and  the  body  carefully  lowered  from  the  cross ; 
after  which  it  was  wrapped  in  a  winding-sheet,  carried  to  the 
stone  of  unction,  where  it  was  prepared  for  burial,  then  placed 
in  the  supposed  original  tomb  of  Joseph  of  Arimathea,  where 
it  remained  until  Easter  morning,  when  it  was  spirited  away 
while  yet  it  was  dark,  in  imitation  of  Christ's  resurrection. 

The  whole  effect  on  the  multitude  was  wonderful ;  men  and 
women  wept  like  children  ;  some  smote  violently  their  breasts ; 
others  struggled  to  touch  or  kiss  the  figure ;  and  some  to  wipe 
up  the  drops  of  blood  that  oozed  from  the  wounds,  applying  it 
to  their  lips,  eyes,  and  hearts,  in  the  firm  belief  that  it  would 
cure  them  of  all  their  sins. 

But  the  most  exciting  scene  witnessed  here  during  these 
festivities  is  the  kindling  of  the  holy  fire.  The  foundation 
for  this  unwarranted  imposition  is  that  portion  of  Scripture 
where  Christ  represents  himself  as  the  "  Light  of  the  world," 
and  says,  "I  am  come  to  send  fire  on  the  earth."  There  is 
also  an  old  legend  which  says  that  on  one  occasion,  the  day 
before  Easter,  fire  was  seen  issuing  from  the  tomb  of  Christ. 
Hence,  the  imposition  is  still  practiced  by  the  Greek  and  Arme- 
nian Churches.  Usually  on  this  occasion  thousands  of  pilgrims 
gather  about  the  Holy  Sepulcher.  The  crowd  at  times  has 
been  so  great  that  many  have  been  trampled  to  death — on  one 


THE   HOLY   FIRE.  187 

occasion  several  hundred.  Now  a  strong  body  of  Turkish 
soldiers  is  employed  to  preserve  order  and  hold  in  check  the 
excited  multitude. 

We  were  present  on  several  occasions  to  witness  this  strange 
exhibition  of  fanaticism.  The  vast  edifice,  with  its  courts  and 
galleries,  was  packed  with  pilgrims  hours  before  the  service 
began.  Some  had  been  there  from  the  night  before,  anxiously 
waiting  for  the  baptism  of  fire.  The  interval  up  to  the  hour 
appointed  for  the  service  to  begin  was  occupied  by  all  kinds 
of  performances.  Men,  mounted  on  the  shoulders  of  others, 
were  carried  about,  going  through  a  variety  of  fantastic  ma- 
neuvers; some  seemed  to  walk  on  the  heads  of  the  human 
mass  beneath  them,  haranguing  the  multitude,  pouring  male- 
dictions on  the  Jews  for  crucifying  the  Lord  of  glory,  and 
shouting  in  their  frenzy  for  fire  to  come  down  from  heaven 
and  consume  their  enemies.  The  excitement  of  the  scene  was 
heightened  by  frequent  conflicts  between  the  soldiers  and  tlie 
people,  the  whole  assembly  at  times  swaying  to  and  fro  like 
the  surging  sea. 

About  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the  procession  of  priests 
and  bishops,  led  by  the  choir  and  followed  by  the  Greek  Pa- 
triarch, all  richly  attired,  came  moving  out  of  the  Greek 
Chapel,  and  after  marching  round  the  sepulcher  three  times 
the  Patriarch  entered  the  Chapel  of  the  Angel,  in  front  of  the 
supposed  tomb  of  our  blessed  Lord,  the  door  closing  immedi- 
ately after  him  ;  the  soldiers  with  difficulty  keeping  back  the 
multitude,  who  now  made  a  rush  for  the  entrance,  all  eager  to 
catch  the  first  flame  from  the  holy  shrine.  The  excitement  at 
this  moment  was  intense.  All  eyes  were  turned  toward  the 
opening  in  the  tomb  from  which  the  fire  was  expected  to  come. 
Ten  tliousand  tapers  in  ten  thousand  hands  were  ready  to  be 


188  BIBLE   LANDS. 

liglited  by  the  first  flash  from  the  sepnlcher ;  one  man,  it  is 
said,  paying  eighty  thousand  piasters  for  a  position  near  the 
opening.  All  now  was  silence,  and  the  suspense  oppressive, 
when  suddenly  a  flame  was  seen  bursting  from  the  tomb.  The 
great  bells  in  rapid  peals  announced  the  event  far  and  near. 
Thousands  of  men  and  women,  wild  with  enthusiasm,  and  be- 
lieving that  the  fire  actually  came  from  heaven,  rushed  to  light 
their  tapers  in  the  flame.  The  soldiers  on  duty  were  swept 
away  like  chaff  before  the  whirlwind.  Hundreds  fell  upon  the 
marble  pavement  and  were  trampled  under  foot  by  the  infu- 
riated mob.  Shrieks  and  cries  ascended  from  the  seething: 
crowd.  Men  rushed  frantically  out  with  torch  in  hand  to 
diffuse  the  fire  among  their  friends  and  neighbors.  Some  in 
their  frenzy  set  their  beards  on  fire,  othere  tore  off  their  clotli- 
ing  to  burn  their  bodies,  and  parents  were  seen  holding  up 
their  little  children  that  the}',  too,  might  touch  the  flame. 
As  if  by  magic,  thousands  of  lamps,  candles,  and  tapers  were 
lighted  in  every  chapel,  alcove,  and  gallery,  until  the  entire 
vast  edifice  was  ablaze.  The  confusion  and  noise  were  bewil- 
dering ;  the  heat  and  smoke,  suffocating ;  and  the  whole  effect 
reminded  one  more  of  the  fire-worshipers  of  Baal  in  their 
midnight  orgies  than  of  a  Christian  service. 

We  pity  the  credulity  of  the  ignorant  people  present  on  this 
occasion  ;  but  what  excuse  can  be  offered  for  the  learned  priests 
and  bishops  who  thus  wantonly  turn  into  comedy  the  most  sa- 
cred events?  For  all  such  exhibitions  we  regard  as  nothing 
more  than  solemn  mockeries. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

BETHLEHEM,  AND  HILL  COUNTRY  OF  JUDEA. 

Birthplace  of  Christ — Church  of  the  Nativity — Oriental  Khan — Christmas  in  Beth- 
lehem— Armenian  Convent — Midnight  Service — Solemn  Impressions — Grotto 
of  St.  Jerome — Birthplace  of  John  the  Baptist — Wilderness  of  Judea — Lo- 
custs and  Wild  Honey — Difiference  of  Opinion. 

QITUATED  oil  a  fruitful  ridge  about  six  miles  south  of 
*^  Jerusalem,  overlooking  the  Vallev  of  the  Kedron  on  the 
north,  and  the  deep  chasm  of  the  Dead  Sea  on  the  east,  is 
Bethlehem  of  Judea,  to  the  Christian  the  holiest  place  on  earth. 

It  is  one  of  the  oldest  villages  in  Palestine,  and  associated 
with  some  of  the  most  stirring  events  in  the  religions  history 
of  the  world.  Here  Ruth  gleaned  after  the  reapers  of  Boaz ; 
here  the  youthful  David  kept  his  father's  flocks,  and  was 
anointed  King  of  Israel ;  here,  also,  Jeremiah,  after  denouncing 
God's  terrible  judgments  nj^on  the  people,  foretold  the  coming 
of  "The  Lord  our  Righteousness;"'  and  here  the  shepherds 
who  watched  their  flocks  by  night  were  startled  by  the  angelic 
song  aimonncing  the  Messiah's  birth,  and  proclaiming  the 
evangel  of  "  peace  on  earth,  and  good-will  toward  men." 

The  name  signifies  the  House  of  Bread,  and  truly  it  may  be 
said,  Bethlehem  has  given  to  our  perishing  race  the  bread  of 
eternal  life.  What  countless  millions  have  feasted  on  this  heav- 
enly loaf ! 

As  we  rode  along  the  well-beaten  path  leading  from  Jerusa- 
lem, crowded  with  pilgrims  from  all  lands  going  np  to  visit 

'  Jeremiah  xxiii,  6. 

191 


192 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


the  place  that  gave  birth  to  the  Saviour  of  mankind,  what  old 
memories  were  awakened !  Here,  on  the  plain  of  Rephaim 
over  which  the  road  winds,  it  is  supposed  the  army  of  Sen- 
nacherib lay  encamped  when  smitten  by  the  destroying  angel  • ' 
along  this  same  road  Abraham  probably  journeyed  on  his  way 
to  the  Mount  of  God,  leading  his  only  son  as  a  lamb  to  the 
slaughter ;  along  this  same  road  the  Virgin  and  her  husband 
once  toiled  on  their  weary  way  to  the  "  City  of  David,  which 


RACHEL'S    TOMB. 


is  called  Bethlehem ; "  along  this  same  road  the  magi  came 
with  their  costly  gifts  to  worship  at  the  feet  of  the  new-bom 
King ;  and  long  before  the  advent  of  Christ,  long  before  the 
Hebrews  possessed  the  land,  when  the  Jebusites  still  held  the 
old  "  Castle  of  Zion,"  Jacob,  on  his  way  to  Hebron,  traveled 
over  this  same  road ;  and  it  was  here  that  Rachel,  his  young 
and  beautiful  wife,  died  as  she  gave  birth  to  her  second  son. 

'  2  Kings  xix,  35. 


THE   INX   OF  BETHLEHEM.  193 

How  toucliingly  sad  the  narrative,  "  And  Rachel  died  and  was 
buried  in  the  way  to  Ephrath,  which  is  Bethlehem.  And 
Jacob  set  a  pillar  upon  lier  grave,"  etc' 

Nearly  four  thousand  years  have  elapsed  since  this  mother 
in  Israel  died,  and  Jacob  set  up  this  stone  as  a  memorial  over 
lier  grave ;  and  yet  the  tomb  of  Rachel  is  still  here  by  the 
way-side,  protected  by  Jewish,  Christian,  and  Moslem  piety  as 
one  of  the  most  sacred  spots  in  the  Holy  Land. 

That  the  grotto  pointed  out  as  the  birthplace  of  Christ  is 
very  near,  if  not  the  identical  spot  of  our  Saviour's  nativity, 
there  is  no  reason  to  doubt.  All  tradition  and  history  agree 
upon  this  locality.  Justin  Martyr,  who  was  a  native  of  Syria, 
and  had  every  opportunity  of  knowing  the  precise  place,  tells 
us  Christ  was  born  in  this  cave  ;  Origen  mentions  the  same 
fact.  Helena,  also,  before  she  erected  her  grand  basilica  to 
commemorate  the  event,  must  have  known  the  spot.  It  is  not 
likely  that  events  so  wonderful  as  the  visit  of  the  angels  who 
announced  his  birth,  the  coming  of  the  wise  men  from  the 
East  to  render  him  homage,  and  the  star  standing  over  the 
place  where  the  young  child  lay,  would  soon,  if  ever,  be  for- 
gotten ;  certainly  not  in  the  brief  period  that  intervened  be- 
tween Justin  Martyr  and  the  Empress  Helena. 

That  the  present  Church  of  the  Nativity  is  the  identical  one 
built  by  this  empress  none  will  deny.  It  is  the  oldest  Christian 
church  in  the  world,  and  many  of  the  forty-eight  beautiful  col- 
umns which  support  the  cedar  roof  were  in  all  probability  taken 
from  the  grand  Temple  of  Solomon  on  Moriali. 

For  fifteen  centuries  this  venerable  edifice  has  stood  as  a  silent 
witness  to  the  fact  that  in  the  grotto  beneath  its  altar  the  "  King 
of  kings  "  was  born,  who  brought  "  good  tidings  of  great  joy 
'  Genesis  xxxv,  19. 


194  BIBLE    LANDS. 

to  all  people  ; "  and  that  also  on  this  very  site  the  inn  of  Beth- 
leliem  once  stood. 

An  eastern  inn,  or  khan,  never  was  a  house  of  entertainment 
in  the  sense  that  Americans  understand  a  hotel  to  be.  Such 
accommodations  as  provision,  bed,  and  other  comfort  at  an  inn 
are  unknown  in  the  Orient,  and  belong  exclusively  to  western 
civilization.  In  the  East  all  travelers  carry  their  own  bedding 
and  provision  with  them,  and  must  dress  their  own  food,  kindle 
their  own  iire,  and  spread  their  own  table.  An  Oriental  inn 
is  merely  a  place  of  shelter  from  the  storm  or  protection  from 
robbers,  where  a  man  and  his  beast  can  safely  lodge  for  the 
night  free  of  charge.  A  portion  of  the  khan  was  assigned  to 
the  beasts,  generally  one  side,  and  travelers  who  came  in  late,  if 
they  found  the  khan  full,  would  have  to  make  their  beds  in 
the  manger  with  the  horses  and  camels,  as  Joseph  and  Mary 
were  forced  to  do.  These  caravansaries,  or  inns,  were  some- 
times very  rude,  simply  a  rough  wall  built  round  a  house,  or 
natural  caves  in  the  rocks,  as  appears  to  have  been  the  case  at 
Bethlehem.  Many  of  these  grottoes  are  still  used  as  stables  in 
the  neighborhood,  and  some  of  them  as  dwellings  by  the 
Arabs. 

Until  superseded  by  convents,  every  village  had  its  khan  ; 
they  were  also  found  along  the  great  lines  of  travel.  These 
inns  were  considered  sacred  property,  No  invading  army  ever 
disturbed  them.  Generally  there  was  but  one  khan  in  a  place, 
and  in  a  small  town  like  Bethlehem  there  never  could  have 
been  but  one.  When  once  an  inn  was  established,  through  the 
liberality  of  some  prince  or  man  of  wealth,  it  became  public 
property  consecrated  to  hospitality,  and  could  never  be  appro- 
priated to  other  purposes. 

We  have  been  thus  minute  in  our  description  of  an  Oriental 


ORIENTAL  KHAX.  195 

khan  because  tradition  locates  the  inn  of  Joseph  and  Mary  at 
Bethlehem  on  a  portion  of  tl)e  estate  of  Boaz — the  old  iiome- 
€tead  of  Obed  and  Jesse — so  that  the  birthplace  of  David  was 
identical  with  the  birthplace  of  Jesus,  his  illustrious  successor 
and  King  eternal.  We  visited  this  place  on  Christmas  eve  in 
order  to  celebrate  the  great  event  very  near,  if  not  on  the  very 
€pot,  where  Christ  our  Lord  was  born.  The  weather  was  mild, 
and  on  the  way  we  passed  several  shepherds  with  their  flocks 
of  slieep  and  goats,  among  which  we  saw  quite  a  number  of 
lambs  and  kids  skipping  among  the  rocks. 

As  eighteen  centuries  before,  "there  was  no  room  in  the 
inn,"  but  by  invitation  of  the  Patriarch  we  stopped  at  the  Ar- 
menian Convent  close  by.  Our  party  were  the  first  Americans 
€ver  entertained  by  the  monks,  and  onr  ladies  the  first  women 
ever  admitted  into  the  convent.  We  were  treated  with  great 
respect,  and  every  attention  was  shown  us  ;  but  the  thought  of 
sitting  and  sleeping  on  rich  divans  in  the  same  city,  and  very 
near  the  identical  spot,  where  the  infant  Saviour  once  lay  upon 
the  straw  detracted  greatly  from  the  enjoyment  of  the  occasion. 
Still,  I  considered  it  a  great  privilege  to  be  there,  and  a  strange 
feeling  came  over  me  as  I  joined  in  the  midnight  service  over 
the  manger  where  our  blessed  Lord,  in  all  probability,  once  lay 
a  helpless  babe ;  and  when  we  all  marched  with  lighted  tapers 
through  the  old  church  and  down  into  the  Grotto  of  the  Na- 
tivity chanting  the  Christmas  carol,  "  Glory  to  God  in  the  high- 
est," we  felt  spell-bound,  and  our  hearts  ^re-echoed  the  senti- 
ment back  to  heaven  ;  and  when  we  surrounded  the  manger 
and  read  in  characters  of  gold  the  inscription  beneath  the  altar, 
Here  Jesus  Christ  was  born  !  no  words  can  describe  ray 
emotions. 

Many  gold  and  silver  lamps,  the  votive  offerings  of  royalty, 
13 


196  BIBLE   LANDS. 

are  kept  continually  burning,  like  vestal  fires,  over  the  silver 
star  that  marks  the  supposed  spot  where  the  Prince  was  born,, 
to  "  whose  kingdom  there  shall  be  no  end." 

Many  other  events  associated  with  Betlilehem  added  greatly 
to  the  interest  of  the  place,  especially  the  life  and  labors  of  that 
eminent  Christian  man,  St.  Jerome,  one  of  the  most  learned 
and  devout  fathers  of  the  Church,  who,  wishing  to  get  as  near 
as  possible  to  tlie  fountain  of  truth,  here  secluded  himself  from 
the  world  and  performed  the  immortal  service  of  translating 
the  Scriptures  from  the  original  text  into  the  Latin,  thus  giving- 
to  our  world  a  correct  version  of  the  Bible. 

The  little  cell,  cut  out  of  the  solid  rock,  where  this  good  man 
lived  and  wrote  with  the  trump  of  God  sounding  in  his  ears, 
may  still  be  seen.  Here  he  died  and  was  buried,  and  here  he 
awaits  the  call  of  the  last  trump  to  a  new  and  endless  life. 

What  hallowed  memories  this  place  awakens  !  What  influ- 
ences have  gone  out  from  this  center!  What  hopes  cluster 
around  it !  Blot  out  the  association  of  Bethlehem  and  yoa 
plunge  our  world  into  moral  darkness,  ruin,  and  death. 

This  village  was  generally  called  "  Bethlehem  of  Judea  "  to> 
distinguish  it  from  another  place  of  the  same  name  in  the  tribe 
of  Zebulon,'  and  because  it  was  situated  in  the  "  hill  country 
of  Judea,"  the  birthplace  of  John  the  Baptist.  This  mount- 
ainous district  extends  as  far  south  as  Hebron  ;  and  it  was 
here,  among  these  hills,  about  four  miles  west  of  Bethlehem, 
near  the  old  road  leading  to  Gaza  and  not  far  from  Philip's 
Fountain,  where,  according  to  tradition,  the  Ethiopian  eunuch 
was  baptized,  that  John,  the  forerunner  of  Christ,  was  born. 

There  is  good  authority  for  believing  that  Zacharias  and 
Elizabeth  lived  in  this  neighborhood.     The  traditional  site  of 

*  Joshua  six,  15. 


BIRTHPLACE  OF  JOHN  THE  BAPTIST.  197 

their  house  is  covered  by  the  old  Franciscan  Convent  of  St. 
John,  which  stands  on  a  fruitful  ridge  in  the  midst  of  the- 
modern  village  of  Ain  Karim,  The  church  of  the  convent  is 
a  massive  stone  structure,  with  a  graceful  dome  supported  by 
four  square  pillars.  Within,  tiie  walls  are  cased  with  porcelain 
tiles,  and  hung  with  rich  drapery  of  crimson  brocatel  silk.  A 
small  circular  chapel,  or  grotto,  cut  in  the  natural  rock,  to 
which  you  descend  by  seven  steps  on  the  left  of  the  high  altar, 
marks  the  supposed  spot  of  this  good  man's  birth. 

A  Latin  inscription  on  a  marble  slab  in  the  floor  states  that 
"  Here  the  forerunner  of  our  Lord  was  horn^''  and  the  paint- 
ings on  the  walls  give,  in  part,  the  details  of  his  eventful  life. 
On  the  right  John  is  represented  preaching  in  the  wilderness ; 
on  the  left  baptizing  Christ  in  the  Jordan ;  and  under  the 
altar  on  one  side,  sculptured  beautifully  in  marble,  we  have  his 
birth ;  on  the  other  side  his  tragic  death ;  and  in  the  center, 
as  an  altar-piece,  the  visit  of  the  Virgin  Mary  to  her  cousin 
Elizabeth,  mentioned  by  St.  Luke.  My  first  visit  to  this 
interesting  locality  was  in  company  with  Dr.  Newman  and  his 
wife.  It  was  a  beautiful  spring  day  ;  and  as  we  rode  over  the 
hills,  gathering  wild  flowers  here  and  there  by  the  way-side,  we 
could  not  but  feel  that  perhaps  we  were  riding  along  the  same 
path  once  trodden  by  the  Mother  of  our  Lord. 

After  his  birth  but  little  is  known  of  John  until  he  com- 
menced his  public  ministrations  by  calling  sinners  to  repentance. 
It  is  said  his  father  was  killed  by  the  monster  Herod,  because 
he  refused  to  reveal  the  hiding-place  of  his  son ;  that  afterward 
John,  for  safety,  fled  into  "  the  wilderness  of  Judea,"  a  wild, 
desolate  region  east  of  his  native  hills,  where  he  remained  "  till 
the  day  of  his  showing  unto  Israel."  ' 

'  Luke  i,  80. 


198 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


His  great  mission  was  to  prepare  the  nation  for  the  coming 
of  the  Messiah.  His  dress  was,  hke  that  of  the  old  prophets, 
simply  a  garment  of  camel's  hair  fastened  with  a  leathern 
girdle,  and  his  meat  "  locusts  and  wild  honey."  In  his  lonely 
desert  abode,  living  on  this  rough  fare,  and  clad  in  his  coarse 
raiment,  God  was  preparing  this  remarkable  man  for  his  great 


WILDERNESS    OF   JCDEA. 


work,  and  when  his  voice  was  heard  in  the  wilderness,  crying, 
"  Eepent  ye,  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand ! "  so  in- 
tense was  the  desire  to  hear  him  that  great  multitudes  from 
"  Jerusalem  and  all  Judea  "  went  out  to  his  preaching.  Many 
thought  him  to  be  the  long-looked-for  Messiah,  others  Elijah, 


LOCUSTS   AND   WILD   HONEY.  199 

or  one  of  the  old  prophets  returned  to  earth.  Among  the 
thousands  from  all  parts  who  attended  his  ministry,  Christ  also 
came  "to  be  baptized  by  him,"  for  the  Son  of  God  must  fulfill 
the  law  in  this  respect  before  he  can  enter  upon  his  work  as  a 
teacher  in  Israel.  And  it  was  on  tins  memorable  occasion  the 
Fatlier  publicly  acknowledged  his  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost 
visibly  descended  upon  him  in  the  form  of  a  dove.  Jolm's 
mission  was  now  fullilled,  his  dispensation  terminated,  and 
soon  after  he  was  called  to  his  reward. 

From  our  observations  in  the  East  we  are  inclined  to  believe 
that  the  "locusts  and  wild  lioney,"  referred  to  as  the  diet  of 
John  the  Baptist,  was  the  fruit  of  the  carob-tree  and  the  dihs^ 
or  honey,  extracted  therefrom.  The  popular  name  for  this 
tree  in  Palestine  is  "  the  locust,"  and  the  fruit  is  known  every- 
where as  the  "  bread  of  St.  John."  In  Arabic  it  is  called 
carob,  from  the  horn-like  shape  of  its  pods  or  fruit,  which  are 
considered  very  wholesome,  and  are  always  found  in  the 
markets  among  the  other  fruits  of  the  land.  These  pods  are 
sometimes  called  "husks,"  and  without  doubt  are  the  husks  the 
Prodigal  in  his  distress  would  fain  have  eaten. 

This  tree  is  found  all  over  Palestine.  Two  may  be  seen 
growing  on  the  side  of  Olivet,  just  above  the  Garden  of  Geth- 
semane.  It  is  a  dark  evergreen,  with  heavy  foliage,  affording 
a  delightful  shade,  and  bears  a  crescent-shaped  bean,  about  six 
inches  long  and  one  wide.  The  outside  of  this  bean,  when  ripe, 
is  a  dark  brown,  and  does  not  look  unlike  the  honey-locust  of 
America.  The  fruit  is  fed  to  horses,  cattle,  and  swine,  and  is  a 
common  article  of  food  amoivgthe  natives.  Traveling  through 
the  country,  our  muleteers  appeared  to  live  almost  upon  these 
pods.  The  trees  are  generally  registered ;  property  in  them 
is   capital,    and    marriage    portions    are   frequently   given    in 


200  BIBLE   LANDS. 

"locusts,"  or  the  fi-nit  of  the  carob.  A  grove  of  these  trees  is 
considered  us  vahiable  as  a  vineyard  or  olive  grove,  and  a 
single  tree  often  yields  a  thousand  pounds  of  pods,  which  are 
expoi'ted  in  large  quantities  to  Russia  and  elsewhere. 

The  fruit,  when  ripe,  contains  a  sweet  pulp,  which  is  ex- 
pressed and  made  into  a  honey  called  dibs,  which  is  the  honey 
in  general  use  among  the  peasantry  of  Palestine.  Sometimes, 
when  a  pod  is  stung  by  a  bee,  honey  will  ooze  from  the  wound 
and  drop  to  the  ground.  May  not  this  have  been  the  honey 
Jonathan  found  in  the  wood  when  pursuing  the  Philistines  ? ' 

The  Hebrew  word  deljash,  which  so  often  occurs  in  the 
Scriptures,  and  is  translated  "  hone}' "  in  our  version,  refers 
generally  to  vegetable  honey,  distilled  as  dibs  from  the  pods  of 
these  trees,  or  to  any  sweet  glutinous  substance,  as  the  syrup 
of  grapes  and  dates.  It  was  this,  and  not  bee-honey,  with 
which  Israel  supplied  the  market  of  Tyre,  and  that  Jacob  sent 
as  a  present  to  Joseph  in  Egypt.  It  has  the  appearance  of 
granulated  honey,  is  often  used  instead  of  sugar,  and  is  com- 
monly known  as  "  wild  honey."  As  John  was  an  austere  man, 
this,  more  than  likely,  was  the  honey  he  used,  bee-honey  being 
considered  a  great  delicacy  and  only  eaten  by  the  rich.  It  is 
also  more  than  probable  that  the  locusts  he  ate  were  not  the 
insect,  but  pods  of  the  carob-tree. 

Joseplms  gives  an  account  of  a  tutor  of  his  w'ho  "  lived  in 
the  desert  for  many  years  on  food  that  grew  of  its  own  ac- 
cord ;"  he  also  mentions  "honey  exuding  from  the  trees,"  and 
of  living  in  the  wilderness  himself  for  three  years  on  no  other 
meat  than  that  which  grew  therein. 

John  must  have  been  in  the  desert  for  several  years.  The 
insect  locust  is  not  common  to  Palestine.     Their  visits  are  re- 

'  Samuel  xiv,  26. 


FEFIT   OF   THE   CAEOB-TKEE. 


201 


garded  as  severe  scourges.  Thej  come  but  seldom,  often  at 
intervals  of  many  years,  and  only  remain  for  a  short  time,  so 
could  not  be  relied  upon  as  an  article  of  daily  food. 

Those  who  entertain  the  opposite  view,  and  contend  for  the 
insect,  confound  it  with  the  locust  of  Arabia,  which  is  eaten  in 
that  country,  but  is  a  different  species  altogether  from  the 
locust  of  Palestine  and  Mesopotamia.  The  Arabian  locust  is  a 
large  reddish-brown  insect,  about  two  and  a  half  inches  long, 
thick  as  your  finger,  and  has  "  no  king." '  The  other  is  only 
half  that  size,  of  a  pale  green  color,  Hke  our  grasshopper,"  has 
a  leader  or  queen,  the  same  as  bees,  and  is  never  eaten,  not 
even  by  the  Bedouin  of  the  desert. 

'  Proverbs  xxx,  27.  *  Amos  vii,  1. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

POOLS   OF  SOLOMON — CAVE   OF  ADULLAM — TOMB   OF   HEROD. 

Water  Supply  of  Jerusalem — Great  Reservoirs — Ancient  Aqueducts — Gardens  of 
Solomon — Cave  of  Adullum — David  and  Saul — Tekoa,  the  Home  of  Amos — 
Herodiura,  the  Tomb  of  Herod. 

THOUGH  Jerusalem  is  situated  on  one  of  the  highest 
mountain  ranges  in  Palestine,  and  so  far  as  known  has 
neither  a  spring  nor  well  of  living  water  within  it,  few  cities 
were  ever  better  supplied  with  purer  or  better  water.  In  all 
the  protracted  sieges  the  place  has  undergone  the  complaint 
was  never  heard  of  any  scarcity  of  water.  But  from  the  flow 
of  water  in  the  Virgin's  Fountain,  Pool  of  Siloam,  and  Joab's 
Well,  and  from  frequent  reference  in  the  ancient  history  of 
Jerusalem  to  the  brook  that  ran  through  the  "  midst  of  the 
land,"  and  to  "the  Fountain"  or  outflowing  waters  "of  Gihon," 
there  must  have  been  one  or  more  living  streams  near  the  city 
before  Hezekiali  sealed  or  stopped  up  their  course  "to  cut  off 
the  supply  from  the  Assyrian  king ;"  and  these  springs  may 
still  flow  by  subterranean  channels  into  the  Temple  inclosure, 
and  through  "  the  Well  of  the  Leaf,"  down  to  "  the  waters  of 
Sliiloah  that  go  softly."  *  The  city  is  now  entirely  supplied  with 
rain  water  caught  during  the  rainy  season  in  rock-hewn  cisterns, 
but  from  numerous  large  reservoirs  of  great  antiquity,  now 
mostly  dry,  both  within  and  without  the  walls,  the  principal 
supply  of  water  must  always  have  been  from  a  distance.  Traces 
may  still  be  seen  of  Ave  broken  aqueducts  from  ten  to  thirty 

^  Isaiah  viii,  6. 
202 


POOLS    OF    SOLOMON. 


203 


miles  long  entering  the  city  from  the  south,  three  of  which 
connected  these  ancient  reservoirs  with  the  Pools  of  Solomon. 
These  famous  pools  are  situated  among  the  mountains  near 
the  head  of  AVady  Urtas,  three  miles  south  of  Bethlehem,  and 
drain  at  least  sixty  square  miles  of  surface.  There  are  three 
basins  of  massive  masonry  in  good  preservation,  measuring  in 
the  aggregate  one  thousand  three  hundred  and  eighty  five  feet 
long,  by  two  himdred  and  thirty-six  wide,  and  about  forty  feet 
deep. 


SOLOMOX'S    POOLS. 


Great  engineering  skill  has  been  displayed  in  the  construc- 
tion of  these  pools  on  successive  terraces  one  below  another,  so 
that  the  lower  one  catches  the  overflow  of  those  above ;  and  no 
less  ingenuity  in  concealing  the  sources  of  the  fountains  from 
their  enemies,  and  collecting  the  waters  of  remote  springs  in  tun- 
nels under  the  mountains — one  of  those  tunnels  being  four  miles 
long,  and  connected  with  secret  conduits  conveying  the  fresh, 
cool  stream  into  the  Holy  City.     One  of  the  aqueducts — a  por- 


204  BIBLE    LANDS. 

tion  of  which  may  be  seen  near  Rachel's  Tomb — is  constructed 
on  the  siphonic  principle,  not  curving  round  the  hills  on  a  level, 
as  the  Romans  constructed  theirs,  but  following  the  elevations 
and  depressions  of  the  country.  The  pipe  is  made  of  large 
stones  with  a  hole  sixteen  inches  in  diameter  drilled  through 


SEALED  FOUNTAIN. 


them.  These  blocks  are  nicely  jointed,  similar  to  the  cast- 
iron  pipes  now  in  use,  the  sections  fitting  as  snugly  as  if 
ground  into  each  other,  and  the  whole  tube  imbedded  in  rub- 
ble-work and  coated  with  cement  mixed  with  oil,  rendering 
it  both  air  and  water-tight.  Openings  were  left  on  the  high- 
est points  to  relieve  the  pressure  when  too  great.  Altogether 
it  is  a  most  wonderful  piece  of  workmanshij),  reflecting  great 
credit  on  the  wisdom  of  Solomon. 


CAVE   OF   ADULLAM.  205 

It  was  also  here  in  this  once  lovely  valley,  just  below  the 
2)Ools.  that  Solomon  satisfied  himself  in  regard  to  the  riches 
and  pleasures  of  tliis  world.  Here  he  built  his  summer  palace, 
to  whicli,  Joseplius  says,  he  drove  in  his  chariot  every  morn- 
ing; here  he  planted  vineyards  and  gardens  and  orchards  of 
all  kinds  of  fruit,  and  yielded  to  the  gratification  of  every 
desire  of  his  heart,  "  that  he  might  see  what  was  good  for  the 
sons  of  men."  The  Yalley  of  Etam — now  Urtas — is  still  liere, 
well  watered,  and  one  of  the  richest  in  Palestine.  A  few 
garden  patches  along  it  are  still  under  cultivation,  and  the 
remains  of  ancient  buildings  may  still  be  seen  here  and  there ; 
•otherwise,  the  picture  is  one  of  utter  desolation ;  the  palaces 
and  pleasure  grounds  of  Solomon  are  no  more,  showing  the 
-correctness  of  the  royal  Preacher's  conclusion,  "  Behold,  all  is 
vanity  and  vexation  of  spirit."  ' 

A  short  distance  above  this,  near  the  old  road  to  Hebron,  in 
a  cleft  of  the  rocks,  is  one  of  the  reputed  hiding-places  of  Sam- 
son after  avenging  himself  on  the  Philistines  for  the  burning 
of  his  wife,  and,  what  is  remarkable,  the  very  name  of  Etam  is 
still  ap])lied  to  some  ruins  among  the  rocks  close  by  the  pools ; 
and  all  the  natural  features  of  the  place  agree  fully  with  the 
narrative  of  Samson's  adventure. 

About  one  and  a  half  hours'  ride  down  the  ravine  from  Sol- 
omon's Pools,  and  about  the  same  distance  east  of  Bethlehem, 
where  the  valley  assumes  the  features  of  a  wild  gorge  cutting 
its  way  down  to  the  Dead  Sea,  is  the  traditional  Cave  of 
Adullam. 

This  is  a  large  natural  cavern  on  the  south  side  of  Wady 
TJrtas,  supposed  to  be  the  same  to  which  David  fled  from  the 
Xing  of  Gath,  and  where  lie  probably  cut  off  the  skirt  of  Saul's 

■  Ecclesiastes  i,  14. 


206  BIBLE   LANDS. 

garment,  as  these  two  events  appear  to  have  occurred  in  the- 
same  vicinity.  It  is  now  known  as  Klnireitnn,  from  Chariton,, 
a  monk  wlio  founded  a  convent  here  at  an  early  day ;  the  old 
name,  however,  is  still  retained  by  the  El  Dlmllam  Arabs  in 
this  neighborhood. 

On  our  way  to  this  romantic  spot  we  did  not  follow  the  val- 
ley, but  rode  over  the  hills  once  the  favorite  resort  of  David 
wlien  in  charge  of  his  father's  flocks,  passing  many  shepherds 
with  their  sheep  and  goats — some  of  them  mere  lads  with  their 
slings,  others  who  were  older  playing  on  a  rude  instrument 
like  the  clarionet — recalling  the  comely  son  of  Jesse  when  a 
shepherd  boy  on  these  same  hills,  and  who  probably  here  took 
his  first  lessons  on  the  sackbut  and  harp,  and  composed  some 
of  those  immortal  psalms  that  form  so  appropriate  a  part  in  the 
worship  of  God.' 

The  cave  is  in  the  north  face  of  a  precipitous  mountain,  and 
the  only  approach  to  it  is  along  a  narrow  shelving  rock  over- 
hanging the  dry  bed  of  the  stream  a  hundred  feet  below.  Near 
the  entrance  a  mass  of  rock  lias  fallen  from  above,  blocking  up 
entirely  the  path,  so  that  no  one  can  now  enter  without  clam- 
bering over  this  obstruction  on  hands  and  knees  with  great 
diflSculty,  and  in  constant  danger  of  slipping  off  into  the  chasm 
beneath. 

The  mouth  of  the  cave  is  very  narrow,  admitting  only  one- 
person  at  a  time ;  however,  once  within,  ample  room  is  found 
for  double  the  number  that  at  any  one  time  were  with  David 
in  his  hiding-place.  From  the  entrance  winding  galleries  lead 
in  different  directions,  and  opening  out  of  these  are  many  small 
grottoes  where  a  man  could  easily  conceal  himself  and  cut  off 

'  Psalms  cxlii  and  cxliii  were  probably  written  in  this  cave,  being  "  the  prayer 
of  David  when  in  the  cave." 


CAVE  OF  ADULLAM.     '  207 

the  garment  or  head  of  an  enemy  without  being  seen.  About 
fifty  feet  from  the  main  entrance  you  come  to  a  grand  hall  over 
one  hundred  feet  long  by  perhaps  fifty  feet  wide  and  thirty  feet 
high,  looking  very  much  like  an  old  Gothic  church,  the  vaulted 
ceiling   of  which  was  covered  with   bats.     Several   passages 


THE  CAVE  OF  ADCLLAM. 


branch  off  from  this  chamber  to  others  of  less  dimension ;  one  of 
these  passage  ways,  through  which  you  must  crawl  like  a  serpent 
in  the  dust,  with  torch  in  hand,  and  almost  suffocated  from  the 
heat  and  smoke,  brings  you  to  a  room  with  an  opening  in  the 


208  BIBLE   LANDS. 

floor  down  which  you  drop  about  ten  feet  into  another  large  hall^ 
with  something  like  a  cistern  in  the  center,  now  tilled  up  with 
the  bones  of  different  animals.  May  not  this  have  been  "  the 
hold  "  of  Israel's  anointed  king  referred  to  by  David  ? '  Other 
galleries  lead  from  this  apartment  to  halls  still  more  remote, 
seemingly  without  end,  which  we  did  not  explore,  as  we  had 
reached  the  "  end  of  onr  rope,"  and  dare  not  venture  beyond 
its  length,  as  our  guides  assured  us  we  could  go  until  we- 
heard  the  smiths  of  Hebron  hammering  over  our  heads.  We 
found  the  cave  dry  and  the  air  pure,  though  strongly  tainted 
with  the  smell  of  jackals,  hyenas,  and  other  wild  beasts,  that 
find  in  its  numerous  grottoes  a  warm  and  safe  retreat,  making 
its  exploration  rather  dangerous,  as  you  have  to  advance  very 
cautiously,  with  revolver  in  hand,  not  knowing  what  moment 
you  may  meet  with  some  ferocious,  htilf-starved  beast. 

This  has  long  been  regarded  as  the  veritable  Cave  of  Adullam  ; 
though  of  course,  in  a  country  where  caves  abound,  it  is  impos- 
sible to  fix  with  certainty  on  any  particular  one.  William  of 
Tyre  locates  Adullam  six  miles  east  of  Bethlehem  toward  the 
Dead  Sea,  which  is  the  exact  distance  and  locality  of  this  cave. 
David,  also,  must  have  been  familiar  with  every  spot  in  this, 
wild  region,  as  it  was  here  he  smote  "the  lion  and  the  bear" 
when  he  kept  his  father's  "  few  sheep  in  the  wilderness ; "  and 
be  would  naturally  seek  refuge  in  some  favorite  haunt  among 
"  the  rocks  of  the  wild  goats,"  where  his  knowledge  of  the  coun- 
try would  add  greatly  to  his  security. 

Some  locate  the  cave  near  the  supposed  city  of  Adullam,  in 
the  plain  country  of  Judah.  There  is,  however,  nothing  in 
the  text  to  warrant  the  location  of  the  cave  near  the  city  of  that 
name,  even  if  the  site  of  the  old  city  could  be  identified  ;  and 

'  1  Samuel  xxii,  4. 


HIDING-PLACE   OF  DAVID.  20^ 

it  is  not  likely  that  David  would  select  a  retreat  so  near  his. 
enemies,  where  he  could  not  possibly  hope  to  conceal  himself 
and  four  hundred  followers  for  any  length  of  time.  Then, 
no  cave  near  Gath,  or  on  the  plains  of  Philistia,  would  meet  the 
conditions  of  the  narrative,  for  it  appears  that  "  when  his  breth- 
ren and  all  his  father's  house,"  who  lived  at  Bethlehem,  heard 
that  he  was  in  the  Cave  of  AduUam,  "  they  went  down  thither 
to  him,"  '  which  could  not  truthfully  be  said  of  any  cave  west  of 
the  mountains  of  Judea.  It  was  from  Adullam  he  took  his 
aged  parents  for  protection  to  "  Mizpeh  of  Moab,"  beyond  Jor- 
dan, which  he  could  not  have  done  from  the  plain  country  with- 
out passing  through  the  lines  of  the  Philistines.  It  was  alsa 
when  here  that  the  three  mighty  men  came  down  to  him,  and 
brought  him  water  from  "  the  well  of  Bethlehem,  that  was  by 
the  gate,"  which  they  could  easily  do  from  the  locality  we  have 
named,  but  not  in  any  reasonable  length  of  time  from  beyond 
the  mountains  near  Gath,  as  the  whole  distance  traversed,  near 
forty  miles  there  and  back,  would  have  been  through  the  ene- 
my's country.  From  the  whole  narrative  it  appears  that  Adul- 
lam was  a  large  natural  cave  below  Bethlehem,  in  the  wilderness 
of  Judea.  So  the  small  artificial  caves  near  some  ruins,  sup- 
posed to  be  those  of  the  city  of  Adullam,  not  far  from  Gath,  do 
not  meet  a  single  condition  of  the  scriptural  account. 

From  here  David,  after  his  return  from  Moab,  went  into^ 
"  the  wilderness  of  Maon,"  a  day's  journey  to  the  south  of  this, 
"  and  dwelt  in  strongholds  at  Engedi,"  on  the  borders  of  the 
Dead  Sea ;  after  which  he  probably  returned  to  Adullam,  a& 
Saul  found  him  here  on  his  way  to  Engedi.  It  will  be  observed 
that  the  place  where  David  and  Saul  met  was  not  at  Engedi,. 
but  "  by  the  way "  '  to  Engedi.     And  the  cave  we  have  beea 

'  1  Samuel  xxii,  1.  *  1  Samuel  xxiv,  3. 


210  BIBLE   LANDS. 

describing  is  on  the  direct  road  from  Bethlehem  to  Engedi,  and 
meets  all  the  conditions  of  the  case  better  than  any  other. 

On  the  hill  directly  above  the  cave  of  Adullam  is  Tekoa, 
the  birthplace  of  the  Prophet  Amos,  who,  in  his  defense  before 
the  king,  when  accused  of  troubling  Israel,  meekly  said  :  "  I 
was  no  prophet,  neither  was  I  a  propliet's  son,  but  I  was  a 
herd  man,  and  a  gatherer  of  sycamore  fruit ; '  and  the  Lord 
took  me  as  I  followed  the  flock,  and  the  Lord  said  unto  me, 
Go,  prophesy  unto  my  people  Israel." "  No  doubt,  on  these 
very  hills  this  faithful  servant  of  the  Lord  often  gathered  wild 
figs,  and  pastured  his  herds  and  flocks,  and  in  some  one  of  the 
many  rock -cut  tombs  in  the  neighborhood  his  ashes  still  repose, 
awaiting  the  hour  when  all  who  sleep  in  the  dust  of  the  earth 
shall  awake  to  life  again. 

Abont  midway  between  Adullam  and  Bethlehem,  half  a 
mile  north  of  Wady  Urtas,  is  a  remarkable  truncated  cone, 
overlooking  the  Wilderness  of  Jndea  and  Valley  of  the  Jordan 
for  many  miles.  Tlie  natives  call  it  Jebel  Fureidis — "  Hill  of 
Paradise,"  but  it  is  more  generally  known  as  the  Frank  Mount- 
ain, or  Herodium.  Herod,  according  to  Josephus,  built  a  strong 
fortress  and  splendid  palace  not  far  from  Tekoa,  and  sixty 
stadia,  or  abont  eight  miles,  from  Jerusalem  ;  M-hich  agrees  pre- 
cisely with  this  site.  The  cone  rises  from  a  high  plateau,»and 
its  upper  section,  of  perhaps  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  ap- 
pears to  be  artificial,  the  ascent  to  which  was  by  a  marble  stair- 
case on  the  north  side,  traces  of  which  still  remain.  There 
may  also  have  been  a  secret  entrance  from  below  and  up 
through  the  interior,  as  tlie  top  is  deeply  sunken  in  the  center, 
like  a  great  well-hole.     The  only  ruins  to  be  seen  on  the  sum- 

'  The  sycamore  tree  of  Palestine  bears  a  fruit  called  by  the  natives  wild  figs. 
*  Amos  vii,  14. 


FRANK  MOUNTAIN,   OR  HERODIUM.  211 

mit  are  two  walls  built  in  a  perfect  circle  of  beveled  stones, 
one  within  the  other,  thirty  feet  apart,  the  outer  one  about  one 
thousand  feet  in  circumference,  the  inner  one  seven  hundred 
and  fifty  feet,  with  circular  towers  at  the  four  cardinal  points, 
forty  feet  in  diameter,  beneath  which  are  vaults  and  other  sub- 
terranean works.  At  the  base  of  the  hill  are  extensive  ruins  of 
other  fortifications  and  palaces,  and  a  large  square  reservoir 
with  the  remains  of  a  building  in  the  center,  perhaps  a  swim- 
ming bath.  These  are,  without  doubt,  the  ruins  of  the  once 
magnificent  palace  and  tomb  of  Herod  the  Great. 

But  little  is  known  of  the  ancestry  of  the  Herodian  family. 
From  the  most  reliable  authority  their  origin  was  very  obscure, 
Antipater,  the  father  of  Herod  I.,  being  the  son  of  a  slave  taken 
prisoner  at  Ascalon  by  Idumean  robbers.  At  least  the  family 
came  from  Idumea,  and  were  Jews  only  by  conquest  and  ado]>- 
tion.  Herod  the  Great,  when  quite  young,  was  made  governor 
of  Galilee  under  Julius  Caesar,  and  afterward  appointed  king  of 
Judea  by  Marc  Antony  B.  C.  40. 

Though  cruel  and  bitter  toward  his  enemies,  he  was  a  man 
of  great  energy  and  foresight,  and  did  more  for  the  develop- 
ment of  his  country  than  any  of  his  successors.  He  was  ambi- 
tious to  leave  great  monuments  of  his  power  to  posterity,  and 
to  establish  a  kingdom  equal  in  splendor  and  extent  to  Solo- 
mon's, but  not  on  a  religious  basis — using  Judaism  merely  as  a 
bond  of  union  to  hold  his  kingdom  together. 

Fond  of  ostentation  and  display,  he  was  lavish  in  the  distri- 
bution of  his  means ;  courting  the  favor  of  Caesar  by  founding 
cities  in  honor  of  his  name  ;  of  the  Jews,  by  enlarging  and 
beautifying  their  temple ;  and  of  the  people  in  general,  by 
building  palaces  and  public  edifices  of  every  kind,  the  remains 

of  which  are  among  the  grandest  ruins  to  be  found  in  Palestine 
14 


212  BIBLE    LANDS. 

to-daj.  A  man  of  strong  passions,  vain,  unscrupulous,  and 
selfish,  he  hesitated  not  to  rob  the  tomb  of  David,  and  put  to 
death  all  the  Sanhedrin  who  opposed  his  measures.  He  also, 
under  suspicions  of  intrigue,  caused  the  death  of  his  favorite 
wife  and  three  of  his  own  sons,  and  with  the  children  of  Beth- 
lehem would  have  slain  the  Saviour  of  our  world  but  for  divine 
interposition.  Beneficent,  but  brutish,  he  showed  great  con- 
tempt for  public  opinion,  treated  his  subjects  as  mere  slaves, 
and  even  planned  the  massacre  of  the  principal  men  of  his 
court  in  the  event  of  liis  own  death,  that  the  whole  nation 
might  be  thrown  into  mourning.  After  reigning  over  forty 
years  he  died  a  most  terrible  death  at  Jericho,  about  two  years 
after  the  birth  of  Christ,  and  was  buried  in  great  pomp  in  his 
royal  tomb  at  Herodinm. 

Thus  Herod  the  Great  passed  away  from  earth  ;  his  kingdom, 
also,  has  long  since  fallen  to  pieces.  Of  all  his  public  works 
not  a  city,  fortress,  or  palace  remains  to  perpetuate  his  name. 
Scarcely  a  stone  of  his  grand  mausoleum  is  left,  and  the  jackals 
that  burrow  in  his  grave  have  long  ago  scattered  his  ashes  to 
the  four  winds  of  heaven  ;  while  the  infant  King  he  sought  to 
destroy  still  lives  and  reigns,  and  shall  forever  live  and  reign, 
for  of  "  his  kingdom  there  shall  be  no  end." 


CHAPTER  X. 

HEBRON — CAVE   OF   MACHPELAH— BEER-SHEBA. 

Ancient  City  of  Arba — Plain  of  Marare — Yalley  of  Eshcol — Oak  of  Abraliam — 
Cave  of  Maciipelah — Tomb  of  the  Patriarchs — Solemn  Reflections — Beer- 
Sheba — Kadesh-Barnea — Meribali-Kadesh — The  Siniaeu  Rock. 

ATO  city  on  earth  can  claim  such  a  long  continuous  history  as 
-L^  Hebron ;  certainly  the  oldest  populated  city  in  Palestine, 
if  not  in  the  world.  Before  Pome,  or  Nineveh,  or  Memphis, 
Hebron  was.  It  is  mentioned  even  before  Damascus,  and,  on 
the  best  authority,  "  was  built  seven  years  before  Zoan  in 
Egypt,"  the  Tanis  of  the  Greeks.  Zoan  has  been  in  ruins  for 
two  thousand  years,  its  very  site  is  in  dispute,  while  Hebron 
looks  as  fresh  and  thriving  as  any  modern  Oriental  city.  It 
appears  also  to  have  had  a  still  more  remote  antiquity,  being 
originally  known  as  Kir jath- Arba — the  "  City  of  Arba,"  the 
father  of  Anak,  from  whom  sprang  the  powerful  race  known 
as  giants,  who  occupied  the  land  in  the  days  of  Joshua  and 
Caleb. 

It  is  difficult  to  conceive  of  a  community  existing  through 
so  many  ages,  marked  by  so  many  social,  religious,  and  political 
changes — of  a  city,  still  astir  with  life,  that  must  have  been 
standing  long  before  Joseph  was  sold  to  the  Ishmaelites,  and 
before  a  verse  of  the  Bible  was  written  ;  and  the  possibility  of 
identifying,  after  so  long  a  period,  the  city  where  David  was 
crowned  king  over  all  Israel,  the  valley  where  the  spies  cut 
the  great  "cluster  of  grapes,"  the  plain  where  the  tent  of 
Abraham  was  pitched  when  he  entertained  the  angels,  and  the 

213 


214  BIBLE   LANDS. 

very  cave  of  Machpelali  where  the  ashes  of  the  patriarchs 
repose,  seems  incredulous.  And  yet  all  these  places,  so 
fraught  with  interest,  are  still  here,  and  maybe  visited  any  day. 

Hebron  is  beautifully  situated  in  the  Yalley  of  Eshcol,  among 
olive  groves  and  vineyards,  and  near  the  summit  of  the  high- 
est ranges  of  the  Judean  Mountains.  This  fruitful  valley  is 
still  noted  for  its  fine  grapes,  single  "  clusters"  of  which  may 
still  be  found  here  that  would  require  two  men  to  carry. 

The  present  name  of  the  city  was  probably  given  in  com- 
pliment to  Abraham,  the  Arabic  meaning  of  Hebron  being  the 
City  of  the  "  Friend  of  God,"  Abraham  having  settled  here 
soon  after  parting  with  his  nephew,  Lot,  on  their  return  from 
Egypt.  Here  he  abode  for  many  years,  here  Isaac  also  lived, 
and  here  Sarah  died. 

The  associations  of  the  place  were  enough  to  inspire  the 
heart  of  the  venerable  Caleb  with  courage ;  and  it  is  no  wonder 
that  he,  after  the  conquest  of  the  countrj^,  when  tendered  the 
first  choice  of  the  whole  land,  selected  this,  the  roughest  por- 
tion, as  an  inheritance  for  himself  and  famil}'. 

About  one  mile  up  the  Yalley  of  Eshcol,  north  of  Hebron, 
and  the  only  point  in  the  neighborhood  that  overlooks  the 
Valley  of  the  Dead  €ea,  or  from  which  the  smoke  of  burning 
Sodom  could  be  seen,  is  the  plain,  or  more  properly  the 
grove,  of  Mamre,  only  another  name  for  Hebron,  the  first  per- 
manent home  of  the  patriarchs  in  Canaan. 

Near  the  foundations  of  some  very  old  buildings  may  still 
be  seen  the  grand  old  "  Oak  of  Abraham ; "  not  a  terebinth,  but 
a  sturdy  evergreen  oak,  with  broad-spreading  branches;  a  beau- 
tiful symbol  of  the  patriarch  whose  name  it  bears,  and  whose 
spotless  life,  after  the  lapse  of  ages,  is  still  fresh  and  green  in 
the  memory  of  the  Church.     Tlie  tree  will  girt  over  twenty 


ABRAHAM'S    OAK. 


215 


feet,  is  very  much  like  the  oaks  on  Carmel  and  in  the  forests 
of  Bashan,  and  if  not  the  identical  one  under  which  the  Jews 
were  sold  by  their  Roman  conquerors  after  the  fall  of  Bether, 
it  certainly  marks  the  spot,  and  is  a  descendant  of  the  famons 
grove  in  which  Abraham  and  Sarah  pitched  their  tent  nearly 
four  thousand  years  ago. 


t^€ 


But  the  point  of  greatest  interest  about  Hebron  is  the  Field 
and  Cave  of  Machpelah,  purchased  by  Abraham  from  "  Ephron 
the  Hittite "  as  a  place  of  sepulture  for  himself  and  family. 
There  can  be  no  reasonable  doubt  in  reference  to  the  locality 
of  this  tomb;  all  history  and  tradition  fix  it  exactly  where 
pointed  out,  within  the  walls  of  the  great  mosque,  which  the 


216  BIBLE   LANDS. 

Moliamiiiedans  guard  with  religious  jealousy  as  one  of  their 
four  holy  places,  and  is  known  among  them  as  the  Haram,  and 
Castle  of  Abraham.  The  name  Machpelah  would  indicate 
a  double  cave,  and  we  were  told  hy  the  sheik  of  the  mosque — a 
personal  friend,  on  whose  word  we  could  relj — that  under  the 
elevated  platform  of  the  Haram  there  are  two  large  natural 
grottoes,  one  above  the  other  ;  that  the  patriarchs  and  their 
wives  were  buried  in  the  lower  one,  and  that  the  upper  one 
is  also  full  of  human  bones ;  which  is  more  than  probable,  as  it 
was  the  custom  of  the  old  Israelites  to  gather  the  bones  of 
their  forefathers  from  all  parts  of  the  land  and  deposit  them  in 
or  near  this  mausoleum  of  their  great  ancestor. 

The  walls  inclosing  this  sacred  spot  tower  above  ev^ery  thing 
else,  and  are  the  most  conspicuous  objects  in  the  city.  They 
are  about  seven  hundred  feet  in  circuit,  ornamented  with  pilas- 
ters without  capitals,  and  of  great  strength ;  agreeing  in  every 
respect  with  the  description  given  by  Josephus,  and  are  evi- 
dently of  Jewish  01-  Phoenician  workmanship.  Jewish  tradition 
attributes  them  to  David,  which  is  very  possible,  as  this  was 
his  royal  city,  and  the  capital  of  Judah  down  to  the  capture  of 
the  "  Castle  of  Zion  "  from  the  Jebusites. 

The  mosque,  which  stands  at  the  southern  end  of  this  in- 
closure,  appears  to  have  been  built  for  a  Christian  church 
during  the  Justinian  age,  and  beyond  doubt  covers  the  tomb 
which  contains  all  that  remains  on  earth  of  the  chosen  progeni- 
tors of  the  nation,  through  whom,  in  the  fullness  of  time,  came 
the  Messiah  of  our  world.  Christians  are  not  admitted  into  the 
cave — scarcely  allowed  to  touch  the  outer  wall — and  the  Mo- 
hammedans, owing  to  their  great  reverence  for  the  dead,  con- 
nected with  the  superstitious  dread  of  the  place,  seldom  or 
never    enter    it ;    many  entertaining   the   idea  that    whoever 


CAVE   OF   MACHPELAH.  217 

attempts  to  intrude  will  be  instantly  struck  with  blindness  or 
death. 

The  question  as  to  whether  the  embalmed  body  of  Jacob  is 
still  here  must  for  tlie  present  remain  unsettled,  as  we  liave 
no  reliable  account  of  any  one  ever  going  beyond  the  entrance 
to  the  cave,  and  no  one  is  likely  to  do  so  soon,  as  the  door 
leading  to  it  is  now  securely  closed.  The  Prince  of  Wales  and 
a  few  othere  have  been  admitted  into  the  mosque,  but  no 
further.  The  six  cenotaphs  here  seen  are  nothing  more  than 
coffin-shaped  shrines  representing  the  real  tombs  that  are  in  the 
grotto  below.  The  first  you  come  to  on  entering  the  mosque, 
in  a  little  chapel  to  the  right,  cased  with  marble  and  closed 
with  silver  gates,  is  the  shrine  of  Abraham  ;  and  directly  oppo- 
site, to  the  left,  Sarah's,  in  a  similar  chapel,  both  covered  with 
green  velvet  drapery  embroidered  with  gold.  Two  other 
chapels,  near  the  cen-ter  of  the  mosque,  contain  memorials  of 
Isaac  and  Rebekah.  The  shrines  of  Jacob  and  Leah  are  in  a 
cloister  opposite  the  entrance,  at  the  farther  end  of  the  court. 
A  small  hole  in  the  marble  floor  near  the  shrine  of  Abraham., 
through  which  a  lamp  is  suspended  said  to  be  kept  constantly 
burning,  is  the  only  opening  to  the  cavern  below ;  and  as 
you  peer  down  into  the  darkness  thousands  of  prayers  wntten 
on  little  slips  of  paper  may  be  seen  lying  around,  thrown 
through  this  hole  under  the  superstitions  belief  that  all  prayers 
offered  here  will  be  surely  answered.  In  the  floor  at  the  other 
end  of  the  mosque,  to  the  right  of  the  nave,  is  a  marble  trap- 
door, large  enough  to  admit  a  man,  and  apparently  leading  to 
the  cave  below.  This  door  is  now  closed  with  iron  clamps 
and  concealed  with  Persian  rugs.  The  probability  is  a  stair- 
case leads  from  here  down  to  the  tombs,  but  is  no  longer  used. 
All  the  natural  features  of  this  locality,  together  with    the 


218  BIBLE    LANDS. 

Moslem  traditions  concerning  these  shrines,  and  the  reb"gious 
awe  with  wliich  they  approach  tliem,  agree  remarkably  with 
the  biblical  narrative,  and  it  is  impossible  for  the  devout 
mind  to  contemplate  the  events  that  have  transpired  here 
without  feeling  the  force  and  truth  of  the  Psalmist's  declara- 
tion, ''  Surely  the  righteous  shall  be  in  everlasting  remem- 
brance.'' 

As  we  sat  in  the  grove  near  the  city,  under  the  shade  of  an 
olive-tree,  absorbed  in  meditation,  what  recollections  of  the 
past  were  awakened  !  There  was  Mam  re,  the  favorite  camping- 
ground  of  the  patriarchs,  where  the  Chaldean  shepherd  sat  in 
the  door  of  his  tent  and  served  his  liasty  meal  in  tlie  cooling 
shade  to  the  angels  who  honored  him  witli  their  visit.  Down 
tlie  valley  yonder  winds  the  patli  along  wliicli  Joseph,  the 
Hebrew,  must  have  traveled  after  being  sold  by  his  brethren 
to  the  Midianites.  And  down  the  same  Valley  of  Eshcol  Jacob 
also,  in  after  years,  must  have  journeyed  on  his  way  to  Egypt 
to  see  his  long-lost  son.  Here,  too,  by  the  road-side,  is  an 
ancient  pool,  looking  old  enough  to  be  the  same  over  wliich 
David  caused  the  murderers  of  Ish-bosheth  to  be  hung.  And 
just  bej'ond  the  pool,  on  the  hill-side  facing  the  west,  is  "  the 
Field  of  Ephron  "  and  Cave  of  Machpelah,  probably  the  only 
piece  of  ground  Abraham  ever  owned  in  fee,  purchased  as 
a  family  tomb  on  tlie  occasion  of  Sarah's  death,  she  being  the 
first  to  occupy  it ;  then  Abraham  himself  was  buried  there, 
his  sons  Isaac  and  Ishmael  performing  the  ceremony.  Next,  in 
a  good  old  age,  Isaac  was  gathered  unto  his  people,  and  buried 
there  witli  his  parents ;  and  after  him  Kebekah  and  Leah  were 
laid  in  the  shades  of  this  same  tomb.  The  last  solemn  service 
of  this  character  performed  here  excelled  all  others  in  magni- 
tude and  pomp.     Jacob  had  gone  down  to  Egypt  ^ind  become 


TOMB    OF   THE   PATRIAECHS. 


221 


the  father  of  a  numerous  family.  Joseph  was  next  to  Pharaoh 
in  position,  and  when  his  father  died  there  was  great  lamenta- 
tion, the  highest  honors  were  j)aid  Israel,  his  body  was  em- 
balmed, and  with  all  the  pageantry  of  royalty,  attended  by  horse- 
men, chariots,  and  a  great  multitude  of  mourners,  they  brought 
his  remains  up  to  Hebron,  and  laid  him  with  his  kindred 
in  the  cave  of  Machpelah,  where  possibly  his  body  may  yet  be 


WELL   OF  ABRAHAM. 


found  undisturbed  and  uncorrupted.  What  a  find  that  would 
be !  One  has  strange  feelings  standing  by  the  grave  of  such 
men  as  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob ;  men  who  lived  so  many 
ages  ago ;  men  who  communed  face  to  face  with  Jehovah,  and 
through  whom  all  the  nations  of  the  earth  are  to  be  blessed. 

Twenty  miles  south  of  Hebron,  on  the  undulating  plain  of 
rich  pasture  lands  lying  between  the  hill  country  of  Judea  and 
the  Desert,  is  Beer-sheba,  one  of  the  old  landmarks  defining 
the  southern  boundary  of  Palestine. 

Abraham  removed  here  from  Hebron  soon  after  the  destruc- 


222  BIBLE   LANDS. 

tion  of  the  cities  of  the  plain.  It  was  here  he  ''  planted  a  grove  '^ 
and  dug  the  celebrated  well  that  still  bears  his  name.  This  well 
is  over  twelve  feet  in  diameter  and  not  less  than  fifty  feet  deep, 
mostly  hewn  out  of  the  solid  rock,  with  many  deep  grooves  in 
its  coping,  worn  by  the  friction  of  the  ropes  in  drawing  water 
through  so  many  centuries.  There  are  other  wells  and  cisterns 
in  the  vicinity,  but  the  two  principal  ones,  supposed  to  be  the 
same  dug  bj^  Abraham  and  Isaac,  are  still  in  good  condition, 
containing  an  abundant  supply  of  water,  abiding  witnesses  to 
the  eventful  lives  of  these  two  ilhistrious  men. 

This  is  still  a  nomadic  country,  just  what  it  was  in  the  days 
of  Abraham,  and  the  wandering  Arabs  may  still  be  seen  water- 
ing their  flocks  and  herds  out  of  the  old  stone  troughs  that 
stand  around  these  ancient  wells,  antique  enough  in  appearance 
to  have  been  used  by  the  patriarchs  themselves. 

Abraham  was  living  here  during  that  severe  trial  of  his  faith 
when  called  upon  to  render  his  only  son  as  a  burnt-oftering 
unto  the  Lord.  Whether  this  was  the  birthplace  of  Isaac  or 
not,  we  know  it  was  here  he  married  his  beautiful  Rebekah, 
and  here  Jacob  and  Esau  were  born.  This,  also,  is  the  scene  of 
the  final  expulsion  of  Hagar  and  her  son.  And  the  history  of 
this  woman,  which  still  lives  in  the  traditions  of  the  country, 
is  another  illustration  of  the  truthfulness  of  the  Scriptures. 
Ishmael,  her  discarded  son,  has  become  '*  a  great  nation."  His 
descendants  are  wild  men  still,  "  their  hand  against  every  man, 
and  every  man's  hand  against  them,"  dwelling  in  the  presence 
of  their  brethren,  "  yet  repelling  every  effort  to  civilize  them." 

Whether  Kadesh-barnea,  the  camping  ground  of  the  Israel- 
ites on  the  borders  of  Canaan,  was  the  name  of  a  place  or  dis- 
trict has  not  been  determined,  neither  has  its  locality  been 
satisfactorily  established.     There  is  a  fountain  in  Wady  Jeib, 


KADESH-BARXEA. 


223 


two  days'  journey  soutli-east  of  Beer-slieba,  within  the  borders 
of  Edom,  that  meets  all  the  requirements  of  the  site,  and  more 
than  likely  marks  the  scene  of  Israel's  rebellion  and  great 
provocation  when  the  spies  brought  back  their  unfavorable 
report  of  the  land. 

This,  also,  would  be  Meribah-Kadesh,  and  these  running 
brooks,  "  the  waters  of  Meribah,"  where  Mu-iam,  the  sister  of 
Moses,  died,  and  where  the  offense  was  committed  which  ex- 
cluded the  great  prophet  and  lawgiver  from  the  Promised 
Land.  In  one  place  the  waters  issue  from  a  cleft  of  the  rock, 
appropriately  symbolizing  the  Rock  smitten  on  Calvary,  pour- 
ing out  his  life-blood  for  a  famishing  world. 


CHAPTER  XL 

THE   LAND   OF  THE  PHILISTINES. 

An  Extinct  Race — Early  Settlers  Canaanites — Her  Royal  Cities — Site  of  Gatb, 
Gazii,  Askelon,  Ekron,  Ashdod — Fulfillment  of  Prophecy — Scene  of  Samson's 
Exploits — Slaughter  of  the  Pliilisliaes — Pulls  Down  the  House  of  Dagon — 
Our  Adventures  in  this  Land. 

THE  decay  of  cities  and  nations  seems  as  inevitable  as  the 
decay  of  individuals  and  families.  Traveling  through  the 
East  you  every-where  meet  with  the  vestiges  of  an  earlier  civil- 
ization, in  broken  columns,  pieces  of  sculpture,  beautiful  tombs, 
and  the  remains  of  once  populous  cities  now  entirely  deserted 
and  as  silent  as  the  grave. 

We  were  never  more  forcibly  impressed  with  the  instability 
of  every  thing  worldly  than  during  a  late  visit  to  "  the  land  of 
the  Philistines,"  which  includes  the  great  maritime  plain  lying 
between  the  Judean  hills  and  Mediterranean  Sea,  and  extend- 
ing from  Carmel  on  the  north  to  "  the  borders  of  Egypt"  on 
the  south. 

This  country,  generally  known  as  the  Plain  of  Philistia,  in 
natural  fertility  is  unsurpassed  ;  but  the  powerful  nation  that 
once  occupied  it  has  long  since  become  extinct. 

The  earlier  settlers  of  Philistia,  as  the  name  imports,  were 
strangers  or  foreigners,  whose  origin  is  involved  in  much  ob- 
scurity. When  Abraham  lirst  pitched  his  tent  in  the  "  south 
country,"  he  found  the  Philistines  there.  Some  suppose  they 
were  of  the  Rephaim  stock  or  family  of  giants  from  east  of 

the  Jordan,  but  from  the  Mosaic  genealogy  it  appears  more 
224 


AX   EXTINCT   RACE.  225 

prol)able  they  came  from  Egypt,  and  were  the  descendants  of 
Canaan,  the  fourth  son  of  Ham.  Hence,  to  distinguish  them 
from  the  Amorites,  or  those  living  in  the  Hill  Country,  they 
were  called  Canaanites,  or  dwellers  in  the  Lowlands  —a  name 
that  was  afterward  given  to  all  the  inhabitants  of  Palestine. 
The  country,  however,  did  not  derive  its  name  from  its  natural 
features,  but  from  Canaan,  the  progenitor  of  the  people  wlia 
first  settled  the  Shefelah^  or  low  district  along  the  coast,  and 
have  stamped  their  ancestor's  name  on  the  entire  land. 

The  Hyksos,  or  shepherds  expelled  from  Egypt,  are  also  sup- 
posed to  have  emigrated  here  at  a  later  period. 

Though  the  Philistines  by  descent  were  Hamites,  their  lan- 
guage seems  to  have  been  Semitic,  as  the  patriarchs,  without 
an  interpreter,  appear  to  have  had  no  difficulty  in  communi- 
cating with  them  as  with  the  Egyptians;  and  all  the  names  and 
other  traces  of  the  language  thus  far  discovered  prove  it  to 
have  been  identical  with  the  Hebrew.  The  only  explanation 
of  which  is,  that  probably  a  portion  of  the  country  was  first 
occupied  by  the  descendants  of  Shem,  and  that  the  Canaan- 
ites, when  they  settled  in  the  land,  adopted  the  common  lan- 
guage of  the  country ;  or  the  two  families  may  have  retained  a. 
knowledge  of  the  original  language,  which  was  substantially 
the  same  as  the  Hebi*ew  and  Phoenician. 

The  Philistines  were  a  tall,  well-proportioned,  warlike  peo- 
ple, living  in  well-built  cities,  going  to  war  in  "chariots  of 
iron,"  armed  with  helmets,  shields,  swords,  and  other  weapons 
of  artistic  workmanship,  when  "  there  was  not  a  smith  in  all 
the  land  of  Israel ;'"  and  were  always  a  great  scourge  to  the 
Israelites,  invading  and  spoiling  their  territory  at  pleasure. 

Philistia  was  within  the  bounds  of  the  Promised  Land,  and 

'  1  Samuel  xiii,  19. 


226  BIBLE   LANDS. 

after  the  conquest  properly  belonged  to  Judali  and  Dan,  but 
the  Hebrews,  except  for  short  intervals,  were  never  able  to  hold 
it.  Occupying  a  countrj-  unequaled  in  its  productiveness,  and 
being  situated  on  the  direct  route  between  Asia  and  Africa, 
their  opulent  cities  became  a  coveted  prize  to  ambitious  mon- 
archs,  and  their  rich  plains  the  great  battle-field  of  contesting 
armies.  The  Assyrians,  in  their  invasions  of  Egypt,  had  to 
traverse  this  territory.  Alexander  the  Great,  after  taking  Gaza 
by  storm  and  putting  its  inhabitants  to  the  sword,  devastated 
the  whole  land.  During  the  Egyptian,  Syrian,  and  Jewish  wars, 
the  country  was  frequently  overrun  by  hostile  armies,  until  the 
nation  fell  under  Roman  rule  and  was  despoiled  by  the  C?esars 
forever  of  its  glory.  Since  then  the  Philistines  have  had  no 
national  existence,  but  have  gradually  become  absorbed  by  the 
Bedouin  tribes  of  the  Desert  on  their  south,  until  one  of  the 
most  powerful  and  highly  civilized  nations  of  Asia  has  been 
blotted  out  entirely  from  the  earth. 

The  government  of  Philistia  appears  to  have  lieen  a  federal 
union  composed  of  five  districts  or  provinces,  in  each  of  which 
there  was  a  royal  city  ruled  by  a  powerful  lord  or  chief,  of 
whom  the  lord  of  Gath  was  king.  From  these  fortified  cities 
they  made  frequent  incursions  into  the  land  of  Israel,  and  it  was 
not  until  after  David's  successful  encounter  with  their  champion, 
Goliath,  and  the  utter  defeat  of  their  army  by  Abner,  that  they 
were  finally  subdued  and  became  trilwtary  to  Israel.  The  names 
of  all  these  cities  except  Gath  have  been  preserved,  and  the 
site  of  that  place  is  now  tolerably  well  established  at  Tell  es 
Safieh,  a  conical  hill  rising  perhaps  two  hundred  feet  above 
the  surrounding  plain,  and  commanding  a  view  of  all  the  other 
royal  cities.  The  site  is  about  ten  miles  east  of  Ashdod,  be- 
tween Shoco  and  Ekron,  and  agrees  exactly  with  the  locality  as 


HER   ROVAL   CITIES — GATH   AND   GAZA.  227 

giv^en  by  Eusebius.  Some  ancient  cisterns  and  rock-cut  tombs, 
together  -with  the  remains  of  some  old  fortifications  on  the 
summit,  and  many  fragments  of  columns,  some  with  capitals 
richly  carved,  show  that  it  was  a  place  of  considerable  impor- 
tance, and  in  all  probability  is  the  native  city  of  Goliath, 
where  David  found  an  asylum  when  driven  by  Saul  from  his 
own  people. 

Gaza  was  situated  near  the  sea  on  the  southern  border  of 
Philistia.  It  is  mentioned  among  the  first  cities  built  after  the 
fiood,  and  was  the  stronghold  of  the  Anakim — a  race  of  power- 
ful men  who  dwelt  there  before  Joshua  conquered  the  country. 
That  it  was  a  place  of  great  strength  may  be  inferred  from  the 
fact  that  Alexander,  after  the  fall  of  Tyre,  only  succeeded  in 
taking  it  after  a  five  months'  siege. 

The  modern  city  contains  a  population  of  sixteen  thousand, 
and  appears  to  be  built  on  a  low,  natural  ridge,  which,  however, 
is  nothing  more  than  the  accumulated  rubbish  of  successive 
cities  on  the  same  spot,  literally  a  mountain  of  rubbish — broken 
pillars  and  walls  of  massive  masonry  cropping  out  of  the  sand 
cvery-where.  The  great  mosque,  with  its  tall  minaret,  that 
crowns  the  hill,  is  the  most  interesting  building  in  the  place  ; 
■originally  a  pagan  temple,  afterward  a  Jewish  synagogue,  then 
a  Christian  church,  and  now  dedicated  to  Islamism.  Cut  in 
bass-relief  on  one  of  the  ancient  marble  columns  in  this  mosque 
is  a  beautiful  representation  of  the  seven-branched  golden  can- 
<31estick,  with  the  sacrificial  knife  hanging  from  one  of  the 
l^ranches. 

The  houses  here,  as  in  the  East  generally,  are  built  of  stone, 
with  flat  roofs,  called  terraces,  on  which  the  inmates  sleep,  eat, 
and  promenade  during  the  summer,  and  where  all  entertain- 
ments are  given.  The  house-top  of  an  ordinary  dwelling  will 
15 


228 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


hold  conveniently  five  hundred  persons,  and  there  are  churches 
and  mosques  in  Palestine  on  the  roofs  of  which  you  could  stand 
from  two  to  five  thousand  people.  These  terraces  are  sup- 
ported by  arches  or  pillars,  and  often  so  constructed  that  the 
i-emoval  of  a  single  column  would  cause  the  whole  house  to 
topple  over,  there  being  nothing  to  bind  the  building  together 
after  the  supports  are  removed.  So  we  can  clearly  see  how 
Samson  pulled  down  the  temple  of  Dagon,  and  can  easily 
account  for  the  great  loss  of  life  on  that  occasion. 


RCIXS  OF  ASKELON. 


Askelon,  ten  miles  north  of  Gaza,  was  the  sea-port  of  Philis- 
tia.  Nothing,  however,  remains  of  this  royal  city  but  portions 
of  the  massive  walls  and  ruins — vast  heaps  of  ruins  greater  than 
Baalbec,  or  any  other  ruins  in  Syria ;  not  a  house,  palace,  or 
building  of  any  kind  standing — all  desolation,  and  quiet  as  th& 
grave ;  the  sands  of  the  desert  rapidly  entombing  the  famous 
city  of  the  Syrian  Yenus. 

Ekron,  celebrated  for  the  worship  of  Beelzebub,  stood  in  the 
center  of  the  plain  north  of  the  beautiful  Yalley  of  the  Surar, 
the  ancient  Sorek,  where  Samson  was  betrayed  by  the  infamous- 
Delilah.  The  place  at  present  consists  of  a  few  mud  huts — 
filthy,  poor,  wretched,  not  a  vestige  of  royalty  left.     A  large 


BIRTHPLACE   OF  SAMSON.  229 

deep  well  and  some  fragments  of  broken  columns  are  about  all 
that  is  left  of  this  once  royal  city. 

Midway  between  here  and  Askelon,  on  a  low,  rounded  hill 
overlooking  the  sea,  is  the  site  of  ancient  Ashdod,  another  of 
the  royal  cities,  and  where  Dagon  fell  down  before  the  ark  of 
the  Lord.  A  few  sculptured  stones  and  mud  hovels,  surrounded 
by  the  ricliest  farming  lands,  and  in  the  midst  of  beautiful 
groves  of  olives,  figs,  and  pomegranates,  mark  the  site  of  the 
renowned  city  that  withstood  for  twenty-nine  years  the  whole 
power  of  Egypt — the  longest  siege  on  record. 

When  we  consider  the  present  desolate  condition  of  these 
cities,  how  forcibly  we  are  reminded  of  the  prophecy  concern- 
ing them  :  "  Gaza  shall  be  forsaken,  and  Askelon  a  desolation  ; 
they  shall  drive  out  Ashdod  at  the  noonday,  and  Ekron  shall 
be  rooted  up.  Woe  unto  the  inhabitants  of  the  sea-coast — the 
land  of  the  Philistines  ;  I  will  even  destroy  thee,  that  there 
shall  be  no  inhabitant."  * 

On  a  high  conical  hill  overlooking  the  whole  plain  of  Philis- 
tia,  and  about  three  miles  north  of  Beth-shemesh,  is  the  Arab 
village  of  Siirah,  the  Zorah  of  the  Bible,  where  Samson,  the 
son  of  Manoah,  was  born.*  A  welly  or  tomb,  of  some  unknown 
person,  inclosing  a  beautiful  palm-tree,  crowns  the  hill-top,  and 
a  very  ancient  square  well  in  the  valley  a  little  north  of  the 
village,  round  which  some  ruins  may  still  be  seen,  mark  the 
early  home  of  Israel's  famous  judge ;  and  without  doubt,  on 
some  one  of  the  many  rocks  that  here  crop  out  of  the.  hill-side, 
Manoah  the  Danite  was  offering  his  sacrifice  when  "  the  angel 
of  the  Lord  ascended  in  the  flame  of  the  altar  toward  heaven."  ^ 

In  stature  Samson  probably  was  no  larger  than  other  men 
of  his  tribe,  but,  being  raised  up  for  the  deliverance  of  his  peo- 

'  Zephaniah  ii,  4.  *  Judges  xiii,  2.  ^  Judges  xiii,  20. 


230  BIBLE    LANDS. 

pie,  who  for  forty  years  had  been  oppressed  by  the  Philistines, 
the  Lord  at  times  endowed  him  with  miraculous  strength,  as  he 
did  Solomon  in  after  years  with  divine  wisdom.  And  though 
"  his  strength  "  is  said  to  have  gone  "  from  him  "  when  shorn 
of  his  locks,  we  are  not  to  suppose  that  his  power  was  in  his 
hair,  but,  having  now  broken  his  vow  as  a  Nazarite,  he  lost  the 
favor  of  God. 

Samson's  first  exploit  was  when  he  tore  to  pieces  the  young 
lion  that  roared  against  him  on  his  way  to  Timnath,  where  he 
married  his  first  wife — a  village  of  the  Philistines,  now  in  ruins, 
about  five  miles  to  the  south-west  of  Zorah.  It  was  here,  during 
his  wedding  festival,  that  he  propounded  his  well-known  riddle.' 
And  on  the  extensive  plain  to  the  west  of  this  are  the  corn- 
fields of  the  Philistines  he  destroyed  with  his  foxes,  or,  more 
properly,  jackals.  The  jackals  of  Syria  very  much  resemble 
the  American  red  fox,  and  are  still  found  in  great  numbers  in 
this  section  ;  and  it  would  be  no  very  diflicult  matter  at  the 
present  day  to  catch,  or  secure  in  some  other  way,  three  or  four 
hundred,  and  turn  them  loose  among  the  standing  barley  and 
wheat  with  the  same  effect. 

Near  this,  also,  is  the  hill  of  Lelii,  the  jaw-bone,  so-called 
from  its  peculiar  shape,  where  Samson  with  the  jaw-bone  of  an 
ass  slew  a  thousand  of  his  enemies.  It  is  a  barren,  rocky  ridge, 
in  shape  resembling  a  jaw-bone,  about  midway  between  Jar- 
mutli  and  Timnath,  and,  what  is  singular,  it  is  still  called  by  the 
natives  Kheishun,  which  signifies  nose,  or  cheek-bone.  And 
the  traditional  fountain  that  sprang,  not  from  the  jaw-bone 
with  which  Samson  slew  the  Philistines,  but  from  the  hill  of 
Lehi,  is  still  pointed  out  in  a  cleft  of  this  rocky  i-idge." 

After  many  other  adventures,  showing  his  moral  weakness  in 
*  Judges  xiv,  14.  ^  Judges  xv,  14-19. 


EXPLOITS   OF   SAMSON.  281 

strange  contrast  with  Lis  physical  prowess,  and,  after  judging 
Israel  twenty  years,  Samson,  through  the  intrigue  of  an  infa- 
mous woman,  was  captured  by  the  Philistines,  who,  after  putting 
out  his  eyes  and  binding  him  with  fetters  of  brass,  took  him 
down  to  Gaza,  whose  gates  he  before  had  carried  away,  where, 
in  his  blindness  and  humiliation,  he  was  compelled  to  grind  at 
the  prison  mill  and  make  sport  for  his  enemies.  An  opportu- 
nity was  finally  given  him  to  prove  once  more  his  strength  and 
avenge  his  wrongs.  ''  All  the  lords  of  the  Philistines,"  and 
thousands  of  men  and  women,  were  assembled  at  Gaza  to  offer 
sacrifices  unto  Dagon,  their  god.  There  was  great  rejoicing  on 
account  of  the  capture  of  Samson,  and  all  were  anxious  to  see 
the  wonderful  man  who  so  long  had  been  such  a  terror  to  their 
nation.  Samson  was  brought  forth  from  his  prison  to  amuse 
the  multitude,  and,  taking  hold  of  the  two  middle  pillars  that 
supported  the  temple,  "  bowed  himself  with  all  his  might ;  and 
the  house  fell  upon  the  lords,  and  upon  all  the  people  that  were 
therein.  So  the  dead  which  he  slew  at  his  death  were  more  than 
they  which  he  slew  in  his  life.  Then  his  brethren  and  all  the 
house  of  his  father  came  down,  and  took  him,  and  brought  him 
up,  and  buried  him  between  Zorah  and  Eshtaol,  in  the  bury- 
ing-place  of  Manoah  his  father."  ' 

And,  what  at  least  is  very  curious,  during  the  last  summer 
there  was  found  in  an  old  rock-hewn  tomb  near  Zorah  a  large 
terra-cotta  coifin  covered  with  sheet-lead  one  third  of  an  inch 
thick,  on  which  there  was  an  inscription  of  several  lines  in  old 
Hebrew,  containing  what  appeared  to  be  the  name  of  Samson, 
and  something  more  we  could  not  make  out  owing  to  the  cor- 
roded state  of  the  lead.  Could  this  be  the  tomb  of  Manoah's 
son  ?     Nothing  was  found  in  the  casket  but  dust  and  ashes. 

'  Judges  xvi,  30,  31. 


232  BIBLE    LANDS. 

After  a  visit  of  unusual  interest  to  the  scenes  of  Samson's 
exploits  we  started  for  Shoco,  down  the  valley  of  Elah,  passing 
the  scene  of  David's  encounter  with  Goliath,  expecting  to  find 
our  tents  at  Gath.  Kight  overtook  us  at  Azekah,  where 
Joshua  slew  the  five  kings  of  the  Amorites.  Still  we  pressed 
on  over  the  rich,  undulating  plain,  startled  occasionally  by  the 
bark  of  the  jackal  and  doleful  shriek  of  "  the  night  monster." 
After  two  hours'  hard  riding,  seeing  light  ahead,  we  were 
greatly  delighted,  thinking,  of  couree,  it  was  our  camp  fire,  but 
soon  discovered  the  mistake,  and  found,  much  to  our  dismay, 
tliat  we  were  riding  into  a  den  of  Bedouin  robbers.  Quietly 
withdrawing,  we  resumed  our  lonely  journey,  and  about  nine 
o'clock  reached  Gath,  but,  to  our  great  disappointment,  our 
tents  were  not  there  ;  so,  hungry  and  tired,  we  rode  into  the 
once  royal  city  of  the  Pliilistines.  At  first  we  found  difiiculty 
in  getting  into  any  house,  and  had  about  concluded  to  spend 
the  night  in  the  streets,  when  a  soldier  from  Jerusalem,  recog- 
nizing me,  took  us  into  the  best  house  in  the  place  ;  nothing 
more,  however,  than  a  mud  hovel — walls,  floor,  roof,  all  mud, 
without  windows  or  ventilation  of  any  kind.  After  partaking 
of  some  eggs  and  Arab  bread  we  were  shown  to  our  quarters  for 
the  night ;  but  O,  such  quarters  !  It  was  a  large  room  with  a 
raised  platform  at  one  end,  on  the  earthen  floor  of  which  we  were 
to  sleep  without  bed  or  covering.  Taking  oar  saddles  for  pillows, 
with  the  horses,  mules,  and  donkeys  all  in  the  same  room, 
we  stretched  ourselves  out  on  the  floor,  hoping  to  find  some 
rest ;  but,  "  tell  it  not  in  Gath,"  no  sooner  had  we  lain  down 
than  myriads  of  fleas  and  other  vermin  began  their  bloody  work, 
and  though  we  fought  them  bravely,  and  slew  our  thousands, 
thousands  more  came  to  the  attack,  until,  finally,  we  were  driven 
from  our  position,  only  too  glad  to  escape  witli  onr  lives. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


SEA-COAST   OF  PALESTINE. 


Plain  of  Sharon — Csesarea — Athlit — Grand  Ruius — Haifa  German  Colony — Acre, 
or  Ancient  Accho — Xapoleon's  First  Repulse — Pasha  El  Jezzar — Tyre  and 
Sidon — Hiram's  Tomb — Interesting  Discovery. 

BORDERING  Philistia  on  the  north  is  the  plain  of  Sharon, 
anciently  a  part  of  Philistia,  extending  from  the  sea  back 
to  the  Mountains  of  Ephraim,  about  fifteen  miles,  and  along  the 
■coast  from  Jaffa  to  Carmel,  once  the  garden  of  Palestine,  but 
now  almost  deserted,  and  seldom  visited  by  tourists.  This  is 
owing  mainly  to  the  dangerous  character  of  the  Bedouin  tribes 
that  roam  over  this  rich  plain,  and  still  claim  possession  of  the 
land.  The  distance  by  the  coast  is  about  fifty  miles,  and  along 
the  whole  route  are  to  be  found  the  ruins  of  many  cities  whose 
histories  have  been  lost  in  the  general  desolation  of  the  coun- 
try. A  few  places,  such  as  Caesarea,  Tantura,  and  Athlit,  can 
be  identified,  but  many  other  remains,  equally  grand,  are  with- 
out name  or  story. 

Among  the  most  extensive  and  picturesque  ruins  in  Syria 
are  those  at  Athlit — a  few  miles  south  of  where  Carmel  juts  out 
into  the  sea — consisting  of  an  old  crusading  castle  and  fortress 
of  great  strength,  once  the  capital  of  Palestine,  and  known  as 
Oastellum  Perigrinorum,  or  Landing-place  of  the  Pilgrims,  be- 
ing situated  on  a  low  rocky  point  projecting  into  the  sea,  and 
forming  a  safe  harbor  for  the  knights  of  the  cross.  The  walls 
of  the  castle  are  from  eight  to  twenty  feet  thick,  and  in  places 

are  standing  at  least  seventy-five  feet  high.    The  lower  and  outer 

233 


234  BIBLE   LAXDS. 

courses  are  beveled  with  bold  projections — similar  to  the  oldest 
in  the  temple  wall  at  Jerusalem,  and  bound  together  with  leaden 
clamps  and  heading  courses  of  large  dressed  stone,  so  firmly 
that  the  restless  surf  beating  for  many  centuries  upon  them,, 
and  the  shocks  of  a  hundred  earthquakes,  have  failed  to  disturb 
them. 

The  fortress  stood  on  an  elevated  platform  of  this  massive 
masonry,  under  which  there  were  great  subterranean  vaults — 
one  on  the  south  two  hundred  and  forty  feet  long,  forty  feet 
wide,  and  thirty  high  ;  another  on  the  east  still  larger,  used, 
perhaps,  as  store-rooms,  and  connected  by  dark,  secret  gal- 
leries cut  through  the  rock.  There  was  a  very  fine  magazine 
near  what  appears  to  have  been  the  office  for  the  receipt  of 
customs.  It  was  about  one  hundred  feet  long,  with  groined 
ceiling  and  richly  carved  corbels  and  bosses.  When  the  place 
was  abandoned  by  the  Crusaders,  in  A.  D.  1291 — after  the  fall 
of  Acre — they  left  here  written  on  the  wall  the  sarcastic  in- 
scription :  "  This  vault  we  filled  with  raisins ;  you  will  never 
fill  it  with  straw." 

The  defences  of  the  place  show  great  military  skill.  Every 
approach  from  the  sea  was  securely  guarded  by  strong  towers 
built  in  the  water.  On  the  land  side  it  was  protected  by  a 
double  wall,  between  which  was  a  deep  moat  that  could  easily 
be  flooded  from  the  sea.  Beyond  these  artificial  defenses,  run^ 
ning  parallel  with  the  coast,  was  a  limestone  ridge,  the  face  of 
which  was  so  quarried  and  scarped  as  to  form  a  third  wall  of 
living  stone.  The  only  entrance  to  the  castle  from  the  main- 
land was  by  a  narrow  covered  way  cut  for  half  a  mile  through 
this  rocky  ridge.  The  deep  ruts  worn  by  the  war-chariots  may 
still  be  seen  in  the  solid  bed  of  this  road.'     At  the  eastern  end 

'  Van  de  Velde  tliinks  these  ruts  are  tlie  remains  of  a  railroad  track. 


GERMAN   COLONY   AT   HAIFA.  235 

of  this  rock-passage  was  a  massive  gate- way  flanked  by  bastions 
and  couiiuanded  by  forts,  all  cut  out  of  the  solid  rock  in  the 
most  wonderful  manner.  This  portion  of  the  work  evidently 
belongs  to  a  period  prior  to  our  era,  and  doubtless  gave  to  the 
fortress  the  name  it  formerly  bore — Petra  Incisa — "  Rock-cut 
Citadel."  Beyond  this  natural  barrier  there  was  yet  another 
outer  wall,  and  a  ditch,  which,  by  means  of  large  earthen  pipes, 
could  be  filled  with  water  from  the  sea,  rendering  the  place 
almost  impregnable. 

The  origin  of  this  remarkable  ruin  is  lost  in  the  misty  past. 
"Who  laid  these  massive  foundations  will  probably  never  be 
known.  Neither  the  Bible  nor  any  ancient  historian  mentions 
the  place.  The  Greek  and  Koman  writers  are  all  silent  on  the 
subject. 

We  have  no  reliable  history  of  this  ruin  beyond  the  Cru- 
sades ;  but  from  the  character  of  portions  of  the  work,  the 
rock-hewn  tombs  in  the  vicinity,  old  coins  and  other  antiques 
found  on  the  spot,  it  must  belong  to  a  much  earlier  period, 
perhaps  the  Roman,  if  not  the  Phoenician  age.  It  certainly  is 
one  of  the  grandest  ruins  in  Palestine,  and  all  who  visit  it  will 
not  only  be  pleased  but  amazed  with  the  boldness  of  the  con- 
ception and  the  untiring  energy  displayed  in  erecting  this  once 
formidable  fortress  on  this  sea-girt  rock.  The  remains  of  a  well- 
paved  road  may  still  be  traced,  leading  from  Athlit  over  Car- 
mel  to  the  cities  of  Galilee. 

On  the  plain  near  Haifa,  and  under  the  shadow  of  Jebel  Mar 
Elyas,  is  the  new  German  colony,  which  promises  to  work 
great  changes  in  this  land.  It  is  a  religious  movement  for  the 
colonization  of  Palestine,  first  organized  half  a  century  ago 
at  Koenthal,  Germany,  by  the  celebrated  Dr.  J.  A.  Bengel, 
author  of  tlie  Gnomon  of  the  New  Testament,  and  is  now 


236  BIBLE   LANDS. 

under  tlie  presidency  of  Herr  Christopher  Hoffman.  They 
call  themselves  "  The  Temple,"  their  mission  being  to  build 
up  a  spiritual  temple  in  the  Holy  Land.  Their  first  permanent 
settlement  in  Palestine  was  effected  here  in  1868.  Since  then 
colonies  have  been  planted  at  Jaffa  and  Jerusalem,  numbering 
in  all  about  eight  hundred  souls,  representing  all  professions 
and  trades.  There  are  quite  a  number  of  naturalized  citizens 
of  the  United  States  among  them.  They  have  purchased  a 
tract  of  land,  which  is  divided  among  the  members  for  cultiva- 
tion, thus  rendering  the  community  self-sustaining.  Their  set- 
tlement here  looks  very  much  like  a  New  England  village,  the 
streets  being  planted  with  trees  and  the  houses  set  back,  with 
flower-gardens  in  front.  They  have  a  good  hotel,  "  Hotel  du 
Oarmel,"  and  school-house ;  the  latter  being  used  also  for  public 
worship.  On  the  stone  lintel  over  the  entrance  to  their  houses 
you  will  generally  find  some  text  of  Scripture ;  and  morning 
and  evening  the  voice  of  praise  and  prayer  maj'  be  heard  in 
almost  all  their  dwellings.  All  of  their  buildings  are  con- 
structed of  a  very  light-colored  stone,  in  the  European  style, 
with  good  taste,  and  in  striking  contrast  with  the  mud  hovels 
of  the  natives. 

The  colonists  are  an  intelligent,  hard-working,  moral  people, 
and  cannot  fail  to  exert  a  salutary  influence  upon  the  native 
population.  They  are  building  roads  back  into  the  country, 
and  have  introduced  wagons,  steam-engines,  and  improved 
agricultural  and  other  implements.  They  are  running  a  line 
of  carriages  from  Haifa  to  Acre  ;  also  from  Jaffa  to  Jerusalem ; 
and  recently  imported  from  America  a  reaper  and  thresher 
— the  first  in  Palestine,  if  not  in  Asia. 

It  was  very  amusing  to  see  the  effect  produced  by  these  ma- 
chines.    Mules  were  the  only  animals  that  could  be  subdued 


AMERICAN   THRESHING-MACHINES.  237 

and  broken  in ;  horses,  oxen,  and  camels  were  entirely  unman- 
ageable. The  peasants  seemed  even  more  frightened  than  the 
beasts ;  some  would  squat  down  upon  the  ground  and  look 
with  amazement  at  the  machinery  in  motion  ;  others,  trem- 
bling with  fear,  looked  on  from  a  distance,  as  though  Satan  was 
devouring  their  crops.  The  reaper  does  the  work  in  four  hours 
of  sixty  men  in  a  whole  day.  The  natives,  however,  think  it 
possessed  of  a  devil,  because  it  leaves  nothing  for  the  gleaners, 
and  cuts  the  corners  of  the  fields,  which  the  Koran  prohibits. 
The  threshing-machine  does  the  work  of  one  liundred  oxen, 
and  does  it  much  better  and  cheaper.  The  Mohammedans  call 
it  the  "  Christian  Thresher,"  and  think  it  a  wonderful  inven- 
tion. 

The  colonists  were  divided  at  first  as  to  the  merits  of  the 
American  and  German  machines,  and  to  pacify  the  parties  two 
were  ordered,  one  from  each  country  ;  but  when  the  trial  as  to 
their  superiority  was  made  the  German  got  such  a  thrashing 
it  has  never  run  since,  and  is  now  for  sale. 

Sweeping  close  by  the  base  of  Carmel,  on  the  north,  the 
river  Kislion  flows  into  the  bay  of  Acre,  a  large,  beautiful, 
but  not  very  secure  harbor,  owing  to  its  exposure  to  the  north- 
Avest  storms. 

The  famous  city  of  Accho,  or  St.  Jean  d'  Acre,  is  situated 
on  the  northern  side  of  this  bay,  and  is  strongly  fortified  with 
double  walls  and  fosse  next  the  land,  through  which  there  is 
but  a  single  portal.  Xapoleon  considered  Acre  the  key  to 
Palestine,  and  his  failure  to  gain  possession  of  the  place  in 
1799  blasted  all  his  hope  of  an  eastern  empire.  Here  he  lost 
his  prestige,  and  his  downfall  may  be  dated  from  his  repulse 
before  this  city. 

This,  the  richest  portion  of  Palestine,  fell  to  the  lot  of  Asher, 


238  BIBLE   LANDS. 

who  here  "  dipped  liis  foot  in  oil,"  bat  was  never  able  to  drive 
out  the  original  inhabitants.  The  Plains  of  Acre  and  Esdra- 
elon  are  connected  by  the  Kishon  Yalley,  and  with  the  Jordan 
Yalley  by  the  Plain  of  Jezreel.  If  a  railroad  should  ever  be 
built  from  the  Mediterranean  to  the  Persian  Gulf,  this  will 
likely  be  the  route — crossing  the  Jordan  near  Succoth,  thence 
up  the  Yalley  of  the  Jabbok,  the  old  caravan  trail  from  the  East. 
There  is  no  mountain  to  cross  in  the  whole  distance,  and  it  fur- 
nishes a  better  supply  of  water  and  timber  than  any  other  route. 

One  mile  south  of  Acre  the  river  Belus,  a  small  stream, 
flows  into  the  bay.  It  was  on  the  banks  of  this  river,  ac- 
cording to  Pliny,  that  glass  was  first  accidentally  discovered ; 
which  is  very  probable,  as,  owing  to  the  quantity  of  vitreous 
matter  mingled  with  the  sand,  a  fire  kindled  anywhere  on  its 
shores  would  likely  produce  the  same  result. 

The  history  of  Acre  dates  back  to  the  earliest  Phoenician 
settlements  on  the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean.  During  the 
Crusades  it  was  the  chief  sea-port  in  Syria,  and  head-quarters  of 
the  Knights  of  St.  John.  When  retaken  by  the  Moslems,  sixty 
thousand  Christians  were  either  put  to  the  sword  or  sold  into 
slavery.  Many  of  her  Pashas  have  been  monsters  of  cruelty. 
One  in  particular,  El  Jezzar,  amused  himself  in  torturing  his 
victims  by  putting  out  their  eyes,  or  cutting  off  their  ears, 
tongues,  and  noses.  On  one  occasion  he  suspected  the  fidelity 
of  his  wives,  and  with  his  own  hands  put  to  death  his  whole 
harem.  Some  of  his  servants  having  offended  him,  he  caused 
them  to  be  thrown  into  a  heated  oven  alive  and  roasted. 
During  my  visit  to  this  place  I  saw  a  man  who  had  all  his 
fingers,  toes,  and  part  of  his  tongue  cut  off  by  order  of  a  former 
Pasha.  These  abuses,  I  am  happy  to  say,  are  being  rapidly 
corrected  in  Turkey. 


THE  TOMB  OF   EL  JEZZAR.  241 

The  mosque  and  tomb  of  El  Jezzar  occupy  a  portion  of  the 
garden  where  he  wantonly  murdered  the  beautiful,  and,  as  is 
generally  believed,  innocent  women  of  his  harem.  The  pillars 
in  front  of  the  mosque  are  red  granite,  with  bronze  bases  and 
capitals.  A  colonnade  incloses  the  garden  on  three  sides,  all 
the  columns  of  which  are  from  older  buildings,  and  scarcely 
two  alike — granite,  marble,  porphyry,  of  every  size,  color,  and 
quality,  some  of  exquisite  workmanship.  The  court  is  paved 
with  the  richest  marbles ;  waving  palm-trees  shade  the  walks ; 
flowing  fountains  cool  the  air ;  cozy  arbors  with  soft  divans  in- 
vite repose,  and  the  whole,  gladdened  by  the  sweet  notes  of 
many  songsters,  and  redolent  of  the  orange,  jasmine,  and  other 
blooming  plants,  make  up  a  luxurious  pleasure-ground  such  as 
can  be  found  only  in  Oriental  lands. 

A  few  miles  north  of  Acre  the  spurs  of  Lebanon  crowd  into 
the  sea,  forming  the  "  Ladder  of  Tyre,"  a  very  narrow,  diffi- 
cult pass,  beyond  which  the  Israelites  were  never  able  to  extend 
their  conquests. 

And  here  we  cross  again  the  pathway  of  our  divine  Lord, 
for  over  this  mountain  staircase  the  Saviour  of  our  world 
must  have  passed  when  he  visited  "  the  coasts  of  Tyre  and 
Sidon;"  and  it  was  here  he  gave  to  our  world  those  crumbs 
of  comfort  which  inspire  with  hope  the  despairing  soul,  and 
prove  God's  willingness  to  save,  even  where  there  is  no  promise 
of  salvation  upon  which  to  rest  a  plea  for  mercy. 

The  renowned  city  of  Tyre,  whose  king  furnished  the  skilled 
workmen  and  much  of  the  material  for  Solomon's  grand  tem- 
ple, was  situated  just  beyond  the  Scala  Tyrioruin.  And  on  the 
ridge  about  three  miles  east  of  the  ancient  city,  overlooking 
the  plain  and  sea,  is  the  reputed  tomb  of  Hiram,  King  of  Tyre 
— historically,   the  first  Grand  Master  of  Masonry.     It  is  a 


242 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


massive  monument  of  pyramidal  shape,  fifteen  feet  long,  by 
ten  feet  wide,  and  twenty-one  feet  high,  composed  of  large 
blocks  of  limestone  in  perfect  ashler,  roughly  dressed,  the  up- 
per courses  being  single  stones,  and  evidently  of  Phojnician 
workmanship. 

A  very  interesting  discovery  has  just  been  made  at  Tyre  by 
Dr.  Sepp,  of  Prussia.  In  digging  for  the  remains  of  Emperor 
Frederick  Barbarossa  they  came  upon  the  ruins  of  a  magniti- 
cen't  Cliristian  church— probably  the  cathedral  erected  by  Paul- 


IHKAM  S    TOMB. 


inns,  when  Bishop  of  Tyre,  and  for  which  Eusebius  wrote  the 
dedicatory  sermon.  The  great  Origen  and  many  of  the  fathers 
and  early  bishops  were  buried  here.  And,  what  is  very  remark- 
able, not  only  their  graves  and  bodies  were  found  with  the  re- 
covery of  this  old  church,  but  their  vestments,  jewels,  and  robes 
of  office,  in  almost  perfect  preservation.  This  discovery  is 
interesting  as  showing  the  vestments  of  the  bishops  during  the 
fii*8t  centuries  of  our  era.  One  of  these  remains  is,  doubtless, 
the  body  of  Origen.     How  strange  all  this  seems !    When  they 


INTERESTING   DISCOVERY   AT  TYRE.  243 

discovered  the  tomb  of  the  emperor,  at  the  depth  of  eight  feet, 
it  was  found  to  be  empty,  wliich  explains  another  mystery. 
On  examining  his  wife's  tomb  a  few  years  since,  in  the  cathe- 
dral of  Spires,  Germany,  it  was  found  to  contain  two  skeletons, 
which  never  before  could  be  explained.  It  now  appears  that 
some  person,  perhaps  centuries  ago,  quietly  remov^ed  the  bones 
of  Frederick  Barbarossa  from  Tyre  to  Hohenstauffen,  and 
placed  them  in  the  coiiin  of  his  wife. 

All  that  remains  of  this  once  strong  and  wealthy  cit}',  "  whose 
merchants  were  princes,"  are  heaps  of  rubbish ;  piles  of  beauti- 
ful granite  columns,  some  of  vast  dimensions ;  substructures  of 
pagan  and  Christian  temples,  with  here  and  there  the  fisher- 
man's liut,  who  now  spreads  his  nets  upon  the  broken  walls 
and  fallen  towers  of  Phoenicia's  once  proud  capital,  literally 
fulfilling  the  prophecy  of  Ezekiel,  "Therefore  thus  saith  the 
Lord  God  ;  Behold,  I  am  against  thee,  O  Tyrus,  and  will 
cause  many  nations  to  come  up  against  thee,  as  the  sea  causeth 
his  waves  to  come  up.  And  they  shall  destroy  the  walls  of 
Tyrus,  and  break  down  her  towers  :  .  .  .  and  they  shall  lay 
thy  stones  and  thy  timber  and  thy  dust  in  the  midst  of  the 
water.  And  I  will  cause  the  noise  of  thy  songs  to  cease ;  and 
the  sound  of  thy  harps  shall  be  no  more  heard.  And  I  will 
make  thee  like  the  top  of  a  rock  :  thou  shalt  be  a  place  to  spread 
nets  upon  ;  thou  shalt  be  built  no  more :  for  I  the  Lord  have 
spoken  it,  saith  the  Lord  God." ' 

'  Ezekiel  xxvi,  3-14. 
16 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

MOUNT  CARMEL — SCENE  OF   ELIJAH'S  SACRIFICE. 

Convent  of  Mar  Elyas — Cave  of  Elijah — Grotto  of  tlie  Sous  of  the  Prophets — 
Mukhrakah,  or  Place  of  Sacrifice  —  View  from  the  Mountain — Priests  of 
Baal— Tlie  Lord,  he  is  God. 

THIS  noted  mountain  is  called  by  the  Arabs,  Jebel  Mar 
Elyas — Mountain  of  Elijah — as  it  was  the  favorite  resort 
of  that  prophet,  and  is  celebrated  as  the  scene  of  his  triumph 
over  the  priests  of  Baal.  Isaiah  speaks  glowingly  of  the  "  ex- 
cellency of  Carmel,"  and  Solomon,  in  complimenting  his  wife, 
uses  the  metaphor,  "  Thine  head  upon  thee  is  like  Carmel."  * 
As  the  name  signiiies,  this  mountain,  without  doubt,  was  once 
a  "  fruitful  field,"  a  beautiful  park  covered  with  forest  trees,. 
olive  groves,  and  vineyards,  as  numerous  old  rock-hewn  oil  and 
wine-presses  indicate;  but  she  has  long  since  been  shorn  of 
her  tresses,  the  "  plentiful  field  "  has  become  barren,  and  the 
shouting  of  her  vintage  has  ceased.  With  the  exception  of 
liere  and  there  a  cultivated  patch,  and  a  few  large  trees,  the 
mountain  is  covered  with  scrubby  oaks  and  a  dense  under- 
growth of  brush,  the  favorite  haunt  of  wolves,  hyenas,  jackals, 
wild  boars,  and  other  wild  animals. 

Carmel  is  a  ridge  about  fifteen  miles  long,  running  in  a  north- 
westerly direction  from  the  mountains  of  Samaria  to  the  Medi- 
terranean Sea,  forming  a  natural  barrier  between  the  rich  plain 
of  Acre  on  the  north  and  Sharon  to  the  south.  The  ridge  con- 
tinues to  rise  as  it  recedes  from  the  sea,  until  it  attains  its  great 

'  Song  of  Solomon  vii,  5. 
244 


CONVENT    OF    MAR    ELYAS. 


245 


est  elevation — one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  twenty-eight 
feet  near  Esfieh,  about  ten  miles  back. 

The  Convent  of  Mar  Elyas,  a  large  stone  edifice  belonging  to 
the  order  of  Carmehte  monks,  is  beautifully  situated  on  the 
bold  promontory  at  the  northern  extremity  of  Carmel,  com- 
manding a  fine  view  of  the  Bay  of  Acre,  and  the  Lebanon 
mountains  beyond.  The  Cave  of  Ehjah,  where  it  is  said  the 
prophet  concealed  himself  from  Ahab  and  Jezebel,  is  directly 


CONTEST  OS  CARMEL. 


under  the  altar  of  the  convent  chapel,  and  is  the  principal  object 
of  interest.  These  monks  claim  Elijah  as  their  founder,  and 
they,  no  doubt,  have  a  remote  ancestry.  They  are  mostly  Span- 
iards and  Italians,  and  in  general  bigoted  and  indolent,  but  man- 
age to  raise  their  own  tobacco  and  make  their  own  wine.  "We 
spent  a  few  days  with  them,  but  were  not  favorably  impressed 
with  monastic  life.  At  sunset  the  massive  gates  were  closed, 
and  strong  bars  and  bolts  secured  every  portal  of  the  fortress- 


246  BIBLE    LANDS. 

like  convent.  At  the  call  of  the  vesper  bell  all  collected  in  the 
chapel  for  evening  prayers.  The  sanctuary  was  dimly  lighted, 
and  in  the  grotto  beneath  burned  a  glimmering  taper,  throwing 
out  light  just  sufficient  to  reveal  the  form  of  the  old  prophet, 
who  is  here  represented  in  his  peculiar  dress  as  still  occupying 
his  lonely  cell.  Vespers  over,  the  monks  retired  to  their  rooms, 
and  during  the  watches  of  the  night  the  profound  silence  was 
often  broken  by  the  plaintive  song,  suppressed  moan,  or  half- 
audible  prayer  of  some  burdened  heart  communing  alone  with 
God.  The  nights  seemed  dreadfully  long,  and  the  days  in- 
terminable. 

Life  in  such  a  place  is  entirely  too  monotonous  for  me.  We 
have  something  more  to  do  in  this  world  than  lock  ourselves  up 
in  prison-like  convents  to  fast  and  pray,  or,  worse,  drink  and 
smoke  our  lives  away.  God  and  humanity,  religion  and  poli- 
tics, have  claims  upon  us  we  dare  not  ignore.  Man  was  created 
for  an  object.  He  should  live  to  some  good  purpose ;  not  bury, 
but  improve,  his  talents.  If  one  has  the  privilege  of  thus  se- 
cluding himself  from  society,  all  have  the  same  privilege, 
which  would  soon  stop  all  progress,  and  terminate  ignobly  our 
race. 

Near  the  base  of  the  promontory,  a  few  hundred  yards  north 
of  the  convent,  and  close  by  some  ancient  cisterns,  is  the  Grotto 
of  Elisha,  or  of  the  "Sons  of  the  Prophets,"  a  large  cave,  fifty 
feet  long  by  twenty-five  wide,  and  twenty  feet  high,  where,  ac- 
cording to  tradition,  Obadiah  concealed  and  fed  the  prophets 
of  the  Lord  during  the  long  famine  in  Samaria.  There  is  a 
deep  niche  facing  the  entrance,  and  a  large  recess  on  the  east 
side,  with  seats  cut  in  the  rock  along  the  west  side  and  south 
end.  It  is  a  natural  cave  artificially  enlarged,  and  bears  the 
marks  of  great  antiquity.     Many  curious  designs  and  inscrip- 


MUKHKAKAH— THE   PLACE   OF   SACRIFICE.  247 

tions  are  cut  on  the  wall,  some  in  old  Plicjenician  and  Greek, 
others  in  unknown  characters.  This  grotto  is  held  in  great 
veneration  by  Jews,  Christians,  and  Mussulmans,  and  for  some 
reason  the  Druzes  come  every  year  and  sacrifice  a  Iamb  at  its 
entrance.  There  are  many  other  caves  in  this  neighborhood, 
once  the  retreat  of  pious  hermits,  now  the  lair  of  wild  beasts 
and  half- naked  Arabs. 

Mukhrakah,  the  place  of  burning,  and  traditional  site  of 
Elijah's  sacrifice,  is  a  truncated  cone  not  over  one  hundred  yards 
in  diameter  on  the  top,  at  the  extreme  south-eastern  point  of  the 
Carmel  range.  It  was  probably  at  one  time  covered  with  a 
forest  of  oaks,  as  the  trunks  of  several  large  trees  are  still  stand- 
ing ;  and  it  is  just  such  an  eminence  as  the  followers  of  Baal 
would  select  for  their  worship.  Some  old  foundations,  a  large 
open  cistern,  with  many  dressed  stones  lying  round,  would  in- 
dicate that  some  kind  of  a  temple  had  once  crowned  its  crest. 
On  the  summit,  where  the  Tishbite's  altar  is  supposed  to  have 
stood,  the  native  rock  crops  out,  forming  a  natural  platform 
which  can  he  seen  from  almost  every  point  on  the  mountain 
and  terrace  below.  The  locality,  the  name,  and  all  the  sur- 
roundings favor  the  supposition  that  this  is  the  identical  spot 
where  it  was  demonstrated  by  fire  from  heaven  that  there  was 
still  a  God  in  Israel. 

The  view  from  this  point  is  very  grand.  On  the  west  and 
south  all  the  plain  of  Sharon,  and  the  sea-coast  for  fifty  miles, 
can  be  seen  ;  to  the  north  the  verdant  mountains  of  Galilee, 
with  great  Hermon  in  the  distance,  head  and  shoulders  above 
his  fellows,  radiant  in  midsummer  with  the  snows  of  winter. 
Eastward  the  view  is  unsurpassed ;  at  your  feet  flows  the 
Kishon,  where  the  priests  of  Baal  were  slaughtered,  and  beyond 
it  the  great  plain  of  Esdraelon,  not  only  the  battle-field,  but 


248  BIBLE    LANDS. 

granary  of  Palestine,  yellow  with  its  rich  harvest  ripe  for  the 
sickle.  Tabor  rises  up  beautifully  directly  in  front  of  you,  with 
the  Jordan  valley  and  mountains  of  the  Hauran  in  the  back- 
ground. Next  comes  Little  Hermon  on  the  right,  with  the 
villages  of  Nain  and  Endor  on  her  slopes,  and  Sliunem  at  her 
base.  One  can  almost  fancy  he  sees  the  prophet's  room  upon 
the  wall,  and  the  Shunammite  riding  across  the  plain  in  the  heat 
of  the  day  to  tell  Elisha  of  her  sou's  sudden  death.  Then 
comes  Gilboa,  Mount  Gilboa,  where  Saul  and  his  three  sons  fell 
in  the  battle,  and  the  shield  of  the  mighty  was  cast  away.  On 
a  low  spur  of  the  mountain  jutting  out  into  the  plain  are  the 
ruins  of  Jezreel.  This  is  the  site  of  Naboth's  vineyard.  Here 
Ahab  built  his  ivory  palace,  and  three  successive  kings  of  Is- 
rael reigned.  Here,  also,  Joram  was  pierced  to  the  heart  by 
Jehu,  and  the  profligate  Jezebel  trodden  under  foot  and  thrown 
to  the  dogs. 

This  locality  fulfills  all  the  conditions  of  the  inspired  narra- 
tive. The  mountain  here  breaks  off  in  terraces  to  the  plain,  a 
thousand  feet  below,  and  can  easily  be  ascended  from  all  sides. 
In  a  depression  on  the  north  side,  about  one  third  down,  is  a 
copious  fountain  walled  round  with  ancient  masonry,  which 
may  have  supplied  the  water  used  on  the  occasion.  The 
Kishon  sweeps  close  by  its  eastern  base,  and  a  mound  on  the 
right  bank  of  the  river,  called  Tell  el  Kusis — "  The  Hill  of  the 
Priests  " — i»  pointed  out  as  the  spot  where  the  false  prophets 
were  slain.  What  interest  gathers  about  this  spot !  On  this 
lofty  eminence,  in  the  presence  of  all  Israel,  the  great  contro- 
versy was  settled  as  to  who  was  the  true  and  only  God.  How 
noble  the  conduct  of  Elijah  on  that  occasion  !  Though  he  stood 
alone,  confronted  by  eight  hundred  and  fifty  prophets  of  Baal, 
his  faith  did  not  stagger  for  a  moment.     Fearlessly  he  reproved 


"the  lord,  he  is  the  god!"  251 

Ahab,  and  propounded  the  important  question  to  the  people, 
"  How  long  halt  ye  between  two  opinions  ?  "  His  proposition 
to  submit  the  question  to  God  was  accepted,  and  the  test  was 
at  once  to  be  made.  The  priests  of  Baal  prepared  their  sacri- 
fice. From  morning  till  noon,  and  from  noon  till  evening, 
they  called  in  vain  upon  their  god,  "  O  Baal,  hear  us."  Then 
came  the  momentous  hour  !  Elijah,  the  only  prophet  of  Jeho- 
vah left,  prepared  his  offering.  The  vast  multitude  waited,  in 
breathless  expectation,  the  result.  The  hopes  of  the  world 
centered  upon  that  rude  altar.  The  sun  was  rapidly  sinking 
beneath  the  horizon.  All  eyes  were  now  fixed  upon  Elijah. 
An  earnest  prayer  ascended  to  God.  Instantly  fire  from  heaven 
consumed  the  sacrifice.  The  people, .  blinded  by  the  light, 
buried  their  faces  in  the  dust ;  then,  with  one  voice,  exclaimed, 
"  The  Lord,  he  is  the  God  !     The  Lord,  he  is  the  God  ! "  ' 

The  mountain  has  ever  since  been  regarded  as  holy  ground. 
Pythagoras,  Vespasian,  and  many  others  have  come  from  afar 
to  touch  the  "  mount  that  burned  with  fire,"  and  the  event  is 
still  celebrated  by  an  annual  feast  on  the  20th  of  July,  which 
is  the  great  festival  of  the  year.  We  were  present  on  one 
occasion  at  the  celebration  of  this  feast.  Thousands  were  in 
attendance  from  all  parts  of  the  country  ;  some  from  as  far  as 
Damascus.  They  generally  come  in  parties  consisting  of  vil- 
lages or  families,  bringing  their  own  provision,  and  each  party 
a  lamb  or  kid  to  make  merry  with,  fattened  for  the  occasion, 
wliich  is  slaughtered  and  eaten,  not  as  a  sacrifice,  but  as  a 
memorial  feast.  There  was  no  particular  religious  ceremony 
observed,  nothing  instructive  or  inspiring,  but  eating  and 
drinking,  dancing  and  shooting,  seemed  to  be  the  order  of  the 
day — more  in  keeping  with  pagan  rites  than  Christian  worship. 

'  1  Kings  xviii,  39. 


252  BIBLE   LANDS. 

All  desci'iptions  I  have  ever  read  of  this  locality  represent 
the  altar  as  near,  but  not  upon,  the  summit,  and  the  sea  as  not 
visible  from  the  place  of  sacrifice,  which  are  incorrect.  The 
altar  stood  upon  the  top  of  Carmel,  in  full  view  of  all  Israel, 
and  from  this  point  the  sea  can  be  distinctly  seen. 

To  harmonize  the  locality  and  narrative  :  When  Ahab,  after 
the  slaughter  of  the  priests,  returned  to  the  place  of  sacrifice, 
Elijah  must  have  gone  to  some  lower  point  on  Carmel  to  pray 
for  rain  ;  probably  stopped  on  the  terrace  near  the  spring,  from 
which  a  view  of  the  Mediterranean  is  shut  out  by  a  western 
spur  of  the  mountain ;  and  his  servant  would  have  to  "  go  up  " 
perhaps  fifty  feet  to  get  a  glimpse  of  the  sea,  and  still  higher 
to  tell  Ahab  to  "  prepare  his  chariot,"  and  get  himself  down 
before  the  great  rain-storm  broke  npon  the  mountain.  It  is 
clear  to  my  mind  that  Ahab  at  this  time  was  some  distance 
above  Elijah  ;  and  this  agrees  with  the  whole  record,  from 
which  it  appears  the  king  went  np  to  the  place  of  sacrifice,  or 
summit  of  Carmel,  and  the  prophet  only  to  the  terrace  lower 
down.  One  thing  is  certain,  there  is  no  point  near  where  the 
altar  stood  from  which  the  sea  is  not  visible.  So  the  place  of 
sacrifice  could  not  have  been  the  place  of  prayer,  or  the  servant 
of  Elijah  would  have  had  no  occasion — in  fact,  it  would  have 
been  impossible — to  go  np  higher  to  obtain  a  view  of  the  sea. 
And  is  it  not  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  prophet  would  seek 
some  retired  spot  where  he  could  be  alone  in  prayer  with  God, 
and  not  return  to  the  summit  where  the  noisy  multitude  were 
feasting  and  drinking  ? 

Great  changes  have  taken  place  since  the  lone  prophet 
erected  his  altar  on  this  mount,  but  the  identity  of  the  place 
has  never  been  questioned  ;  and  though  Carmel  may  languish, 
the  name  of  Elijah  the  Tishbite  shall  never  die  ! 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

FROM  JERUSALEM  TO  DAMASCUS. 

Teut  Life— Gibeali  of  Benjamin— Bethel— Curious  Legend — Shiloh — Jacob's 
Well — Shechem — Xazaretii — Sea  of  Galilee — Site  of  Capernaum — Waters 
of  Merom — Dan — Cassarea  Philippi — Crossing  Hermon — Tomb  of  Nimrod — 
Damascus. 

WITH  good  tents,  horses,  and  dragoman  there  is  now  no 
difficulty  in  traveling  from  one  end  of  Palestine  to  the 
other,  and,  with  the  Bible  as  a  guide-book,  locate  nearly  every 
place  of  religions  interest.  And  there  is  something  fascinating, 
almost  inspiring,  in  such  a  trip  ;  the  dews  of  night  are  cooling 
and  refreshing ;  the  atmosphere  clear  and  exhilarating ;  every 
hill  and  dale  and  plain,  in  the  spring-time,  covered  with  wild 
flowers  ;  and  the  mind  is  kept  constantly  excited  by  the  sacred 
and  historic  memories  awakened  by  every  tree  and  rock  and 
ruin  by  the  way. 

True,  there  is  nothing  very  striking  or  grand  in  the  scenery, 
yet  it  possesses  an  interest  greater  than  any  other  land,  when 
we  call  up  the  ancient  men  born  among  its  craggy  hills  and 
cradled  in  its  little  wadies,  and  whose  bodies  still  sleep  in  its 
rock-hewn  tombs.  Nor  is  there  any  thing  very  beautiful ;  but 
who  thinks  of  the  beautiful  when  visiting  a  grave-yard  or 
strolling  over  a  battle-field  ?  Palestine  contains  the  tomb  of 
Christ ;  here  repose  the  ashes  of  the  Patriarchs,  and  this  is  the 
world's  great  moral  battle-field,  whore  the  Captain  of  our  sal- 
vation stormed  the  citadel  of  sin  and  death,  and  "  brought  life 

and  immortality  to  light." 

253 


254 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


The  events  of  the  remote  past  seem  to  have  occurred  but 
yesterday.  Christ  appears  every-where  present,  and  you  can 
ahnost  fancy  you  hear  his  voice,  saying,  "  Lo,  I  am  with  you 
alway."  The  narratives  of  the  New  Testament  become  living 
realities,  and  so  striking  is  the  harmony  between  the  text  of 


DAMASCUS   GATE,  JERUSALEM 

Scripture  and  the  landscape,  and  so  wonderfully  do  they 
accord,  the  very  scenery  is  like  a  new  gospel,  or  fresh  revela- 
tion from  God. 

.Going  out  of  the  Damascus  gate,  and  taking  the  old  Roman 
road  leading  north — the  very  same  along  which  Christ  must 
have  journeyed  on  his  way  to  Galilee — in  about  one  hour  we 


BETHEL— THE   HOUSE   OF  GOD.  255 

reach  the  ruins  of  Gibeah  of  Benjamin,  once  the  royal  residence 
of  Saul,  Israel's  first  king,  and  where  Rizpah  watched  with  so 
much  maternal  tenderness  the  dead  bodies  of  her  two  sons, 
from  "the  beginning  of  the  barley  harvest,'"  about  the  month 
of  May,  till  the  autumn  rains  began  to  fall,  in  October  or  No- 
vember. In  the  Orient  they  bury  their  dead  very  shallow,  and 
this  devoted  mother  during  all  that  time  A^atched  the  graves 
of  her  children,  keeping  ofE  the  vultures  by  day  and  the  jackals 
and  liyenas  by  night,  from  devouring  their  remains. 

The  names  of  towns  in  the  East  often  apply  to  the  districts 
in  which  they  are  located.  Bethany,  for  instance,  not  only 
relates  to  the  home  of  Mary  and  Martha,  but  to  the  district  of 
which  it  is  the  principal  village;  and  by  Gibeah  we  are  to 
understand  not  only  the  royal  city  of  Saul,  but  the  district  of 
which  it  was  the  capital.  This  will  harmonize  the  passages 
that  refer  to  "  Gibeah  in  the  field,"  *  and  Saul's  abode  being 
"  in  the  uttermost  part  of  Gibeah  under  a  pomegranate-tree ;  "  ' 
and  of  his  coming  *'  out  of  the  field  with  the  herd,"  *  to  meet 
the  messengers  from  Jabesh.  It  was  also  here  that  the  shock- 
ing o£fense  was  committed  against  a  helpless  woman  that  well- 
nigh  involved  the  extermination  of  the  tribe  of  Benjamin. 

Resuming  our  journey,  in  two  hours  we  come  to  the  site  of  .  / 
ancient  Betliel — the  house  of  God — so  called  in  commemora- 
tion of  God's  manifestations  here  to  his  servants  the  patriarchs. 
Near  this  Abraham,  when  he  first  entered  Canaan,  built  an 
altar,  "and  called  upon  the  name  of  the  Lord."*  Here  Jacob 
had  his  wonderful  vision  of  the  ladder  reaching  from  earth  to 
heaven,  on  which  the  angels  of  God  ascended  and  descended ; 
and  it  was  here,  in  after  centuries,  the  ark  of  the  covenant  was 

•  2  Samuel  xxi,  10.  ^  Judges  xz,  31.  ^1  Samuel  xiv,  2. 

*  1  Samuel  xi,  5.  *  Grenesis  xii,  8. 


256  BIBLE   LANDS. 

kept  for  many  years  in  the  days  of  Phineliasl/  Bethel  was 
situated  on  the  highway  between  Jerusalem  and  Shechem.  Por- 
tions of  the  paved  road-bed  may  still  be  seen,  and  a  few  of  the 
old  mile-stones  are  yet  standing  and  others  lying  by  the  way. 

The  supposed  site  of  Jacob's  vision  is  marked  by  the  ruins 
of  a  square  tower  half  a  mile  to  the  east  of  the  modern  village ; 
and  as  we  rode  up  to  the  place  an  Arab,  wrapped  in  his  c^a, 
or  cloak,  lay  fast  asleep  by  the  way-side,  with  a  large  stone  for 
his  pillow,  recalling  the  old  patriarch,  who,  long  centuries  be- 
fore, had  slept  in  the  same  manner,  and  very  near  the  same 
spot,  on  his  way  to  Padan-aram.  This  custom  of  using  stones 
for  pillows  prevails  all  through  Palestine,  the  thick  turbans 
worn  by  the  natives  protecting  the  head,  and  rendering  even  a 
rock  a  comfortable  pillow. 

A  curious  legend  is  told  in  connection  with  this  stone  which. 
Jacob  slept  on,  and  afterward  set  up  and  anointed  with  oiL 
After  the  conquest  of  the  country,  according  to  the  tradition, 
this  stone,  known  as  the  "  Stone  of  Destiny,"  was  kept  in  the 
sanctuary  at  Bethel  until  removed  to  the  temple  at  Jerusalem, 
where  the  ark  of  the  covenant  was  placed  upon  it.  This,  it  is 
said,  was  the  stone  referred  to  by  Jacob  as  that  "  which  the 
builders  rejected,"  but  which  afterward  became  the  "  head  of 
the  corner,"  and  was  destined  for  peculiar  honors !  When 
the  temple  was  destroyed  by  the  Babylonians,  the  Prophet 
Jeremiah,  as  the  story  runs,  with  the  remnant  of  the  tribe  of 
Judah,  migrated  to  Ireland,  taking  "  Jacob's  pillow "  with 
them,  and  all  the  Irish  kings  were  crowned  upon  it !  An  Irish 
prince  afterward  conveyed  it  to  Scotland,  and  all  the  Scottish 
kings  were  crowned  upon  it ;  but  with  its  loss  Ireland  lost  her 
independence,  and  tliis  is  the  secret  of  all  her  woes.  In  after 
centuries  it  was  removed  to  Westminster  Abbey,  where  it  may 


MICH  MASH.  257 

still  be  seen  in  the  seat  of  the  coronation  chair,  and  upon  it 
all  the  kings  and  queens  of  England,  since  the  days  of  Ed- 
ward III.  down  to  Victoria,  have  been  crowned,  and  many 
superstitious  people  think  that  so  long  as  England  retains 
possession  of  this  stone,  so  long  will  she  maintain  her  ascend- 
ency among  the  nations. 

Ten  minutes'  walk  along  the  ridge  south-east  of  the  old  tower 
are  the  ruins  of  a  large  Christian  church,  probably  built  by  the 
Crusaders,  marking  the  supposed  camping-place  of  Abraham 
on  his  return  from  Egypt,  and  where  he  parted  with  his, nephew 
Lot.  The  spot  commands  an  extensive  view  of  the  Jordan  val- 
ley, and  you  can  distinctly  see  from  this  point  with  the  naked 
eye  the  traditional  site  of  Zoar,  near  the  southern  end  of  the 
Dead  Sea,  thus  removing  at  least  all  topographical  objections 
to  the  location  of  the  "  little  city." 

On  a  lower  spur  of  this  mountain  range,  and  just  below  where 
Abraham  erected  his  altar,  are  large  rock-hewn  reservoirs,  and 
the  ruins  of  a  very  old  city,  supposed  to  be  the  remains  of  Ai, 
the  second  place  taken  by  Joshua  in  the  conquest  of  the  land, 
and  where  Achan's  sin  brought  defeat  and  disgrace  upon  the 
people  of  God.'  Still  farther  east,  perched  like  an  eagle's  nest 
on  a  craggy,  almost  inaccessible  cliff,  is  Michmash,  the  scene  of 
Jonathan's  bold  adventure,  when  with  only  his  armor-bearer 
he  surprised  and  put  to  flight  the  whole  garrison  of  the  Phi- 
listines.'' And  just  here,  where  the  mountain  slopes  down  into 
the  valley  up  which  winds  the  road  from  Jericho  tp  Bethel, 
Elisha  was  returning  from  Gilgal  when  the  naughty  children 
mocked  this  old  servant  of  God,  and  two  hungry  bears  came 
"  out  of  the  wood  "  and  destroyed  forty-and-two  of  their  num- 
ber.'    Bears  are  still  found  in  this  region,  and  if  the  young 

1  Joshua  vii,  21.  «  1  Samuel  xiv,  4.  ^  2  Kings  li,  23. 


258  BIBLE  .LANDS. 

trees  were  allowed  to  grow  forests  would  again  cover  these 
hills,  as  when  Joshua's  arinj  lay  in  ambush  on  their  slopes. 
It  was  no  doubt  up  this  same  valley  the  lion  came  from  the 
jungles  along  the  Jordan  that  slew  the  disobedient  prophet 
who  came  out  of  Judali. 

After  the  formation  of  the  new  kingdom  of  Israel,  Jeroboam 
selected  Bethel  as  his  royal  residence,  building  here  great  pal- 
aces and  "  houses  of  ivory  " — inlaid  with  ivory — making  it  the 
seat  of  the  idolatrous  worship  of  the  golden  calf,  thus  turning 
the  house  of  God  into  a  house  of  idols,  until  God  in  his  wrath 
rent  the  altar  asunder,  and  scattered  its  ashes  to  the  four  winds 
of  heaven. 

But  little  is  left  of  the  old  city.  The  prediction  of  Amos, 
that  "  Bethel  shall  come  to  naught,"  has  been  fulfilled  to  the 
letter  ;  for  all  that  remains  of  that  memorable  place  are  a  few 
hovels  and  a  large  ancient  reservoir  fed  by  a  living  spring,  to 
which  the  village  maidens  may  be  seen  coming  with  their 
water-pitchers  as  of  old,  but  entirely  ignorant  of  the  history  of 
the  place,  and  indifferent  to  its  sacred  associations. 

The  first  night  after  leaving  Jerusalem  we  encamped  at 
Shiloh,  under  a  venerable  oak  near  the  ruins  of  an  old  church, 
supposed  to  mark  the  spot  where  the  tabernacle  was  first  set 
up  after  the  conquest  of  Canaan,  and  where  Eli  officiated  as 
high-priest,  and  little  "  Samuel  ministered  before  the  Lord." 
The  following  day  we  lunched  at  Jacob's  well,  on  the  Plain  of 
Moreh,  where  Abraham  first  pitched  his  tent  in  the  Land  of 
Promise.  The  well  is  one  hundred  and  five  feet  deep,  cut 
through  the  solid  rock,  and  without  doubt  is  the  same  on  the 
curb  of  which  the  Saviour  of  our  world,  weary  and  faint,  rested 
in  the  heat  of  tlie  day,  when  he  delivered  his  memorable  dis- 
course to  the  woman  of  Samaria.     A  ride  of  five  minutes  over 


T^ 


NABLOUS A]!fCIE:jrr    SHECHEM. 


261 


the  plain,  directly  north,  brings  us  to  Joseph's  tomb,  an  open 
\  inclosure  about  twenty  by  thirty  feet,  containing,  beyond  ques- 
^  tion,  the  ashes  of  Jacob's  beloved  son. 

^N'ablous,  the  old  city  of  Shechem,  our  camping-place  for  the 
night,  is  situated  a  little  way  up  the  valley  to  the  west,  with 
Mount  Gerizim  on  the  south  and  Ebal  on  the  north.  It  was 
here  Joshua  read  the  law  "before  all  the  congregation  of  Is- 


^^:^^'>^/: 


rael,"  *  and  we  have  in  the  topography  of  this  locality  a  won- 
derful corroboration  of  the  inspired  narrative.  Here  are  two 
vast  amphitheaters  facing  each  other,  and  forming  a  natui-al 
whisper-gallery,  where  a  man  reading  with  a  clear  voice  could 
be  heard  distinctly  by  a  million  persons ;  showing  that  there 
was  nothing  impossible  nor  miraculous  in  the  event  re- 
corded. In  our  illustration  Gerizim  is  to  the  right,  and  it 
was  on  the  summit  of  this  mountain   the   Samaritans  built 

'  Joshua  viii,  35. 


262  BIBLE    LANDS. 

their  temple,  and  even  to  the  present  annually  observe  the 
Passover. 

Breaking  camp  early,  and  passing  tlirough  Samaria,  long  the 
capital  of  Israel,  with  its  once  beautiful  colonnade  half  buried 
in  rubbish,  and  Dothan,  where  Elisha  smote  his  enemies  with 
blindness,  and  where  Joseph  was  sold  to  the  Ishmaelites,  we 
crossed  the  eastern  spurs  of  Garmel,  leaving  the  scene  of  Elijah's 
sacrifice  to  our  left,  and,  descending  into  the  plain,  found  onr 
tents  pitched  on  the  site  of  Naboth's  vineyard,  near  the  Fountain 
of  Jezreel,  where  tlie  infamous  Jezebel  was  thrown  to  the  dogs. 
It  was  up  this  valley  Jehu  furiously  drove  in  his  chariot,  and 
out  on  tlie  plain  before  us  is  where  "the  sword  of  the  Lord 
and  of  Gideon  "  prevailed  against  the  Midianites.  Resuming 
our  journey  on  the  morrow,  crossing  the  broad,  rich  Plain  of 
Esdraelon,  and  sweeping  round  the  base  of  Little  liermon  and 
Tabor,  leaving  Shunem  and  Xain  on  our  right,  we  began  the 
difficult  ascent  of  the  Galilean  hills,  and  after  an  hour's  climb- 
ing reached  the  quiet  village  of  Nazareth,  the  early  home  of 
the  Son  of  God  on  earth.  What  memories  the  name  of  "  Jesus 
of  Nazareth"  awakens!  Among  these  hills  Christ  spent  his 
childhood ;  on  tliis  landscape  he  must  have  gazed  ;  at  the  fount- 
ain from  which  we  drink  he  must  often  have  quenched  his 
thirst ;  here  he  labored  for  his  daily  bread  ;  here  he  was  trained 
for  his  life  sublime ;  here  he  tanght  in  the  synagogue ;  and  over 
one  of  these  neighboring  cliffs  his  own  people,  after  rejecting 
his  preaching,  would  have  hurled  liim  to  death  had  not  his 
divinity  saved  his  humanity. 

From  Nazareth  to  the  Sea  of  Galilee  via  Cana,  where  Christ 
performed  his  first  miracle,  is  an  easy  day's  ride.  On  the  way 
we  stopped  for  luncheon  on  the  traditional  mount  where  Christ 
delivered  his  inimitable  sermon,  and  miraculously  fed  the  liun- 


NAZARETH   AND    SEA    OF    GALILEE. 


263 


gry  thousands  who  waited  on  his  ministry.  Here,  also,  was 
fought,  in  A.  D.  1187,  the  last  great  battle  between  the  Cru- 
saders and  Mohammedans,  that  sealed  the  fate  of  Palestine. 
Eather  singular  that  this  fearful  slaughter  of  Christians  should 
have  taken  place  on  the  reputed  spot  where  the  Prince  of  Peace 
taught  our  world  the  divine  precepts  of  charity  and  forgiveness. 


Moimting  our  horses,  we  soon  began  descending  from  the  high 
table-land,  and  by  sundown  were  in  our  tents  on  the  shores  of 
the  lake  just  below  the  town  of  Tiberias — the  ancient  capital 
of  Galilee.  This  lake  is  fifteen  miles  long  by  about  half  that 
distance  wide,  and  lies  six  hundred  and  fifty  feet  below  the 
level  of  the  ocean.     It  still  abounds  with  fish,  and  its  shores  are 


264  BIBLE   LANDS. 

covered  with  small  shells,  and  bordered  with  oleanders  and  other 
flowering  shrubs.  What  could  be  more  delightful  than  to  stroll 
along  the  pebbly  beach,  bathe  in  the  limpid  waters,  and  be  lulled 
to  rest  at  night  by  the  rippling  waves  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee  'i 
or,  after  a  morning  walk  on  its  shores,  or  a  sail  over  its  glassy 
surface,  make  your  breakfast  on  iish  taken  from  the  same  lake 
where  the  disciples  toiled  all  night  and  caught  nothing  ? 

About  four  miles  north  of  Tiberias  is  the  villaece  of  Masdala, 
the  native  town  of  Mary  Magdalene ;  and  two  miles  west  of 
this,  in  a  wild,  rocky  gorge,  are  the  ruins  of  Irbid,  and  of  an 
old  castle  perched  on  the  top  of  a  high  cliff,  in  the  sides  of 
which  are  numerous  caverns.  This  undoubtedly  is  ancient 
Arbela,  from  which  Herod  the  Great  dislodged  the  band  of 
robbers  who  were  such  a  terror  to  the  inhabitants  of  that  region. 
According  to  Joseplius,  Plerod  first  laid  siege  to  the  caverns, 
but  without  avail.  He  then  lowered  i3arties  of  soldiers  in  large 
boxes  by  chains  f  i-om  above,  and  with  fire  and  SM'ord  attacked 
those  who  defended  the  entrance,  dragging  them  out  of  their 
dens  with  long  hooks,  and  hurling  them  down  the  precipice ; 
and  in  this  way  the  place  was  finally  taken  and  the  robbers 
destroyed. 

Magdala  is  on  the  southern  edge  of  the  rich  Plain  of  Gen- 
nesareth,  that  here  puts  into  the  sea.  On  the  northern  side  of 
this  plain,  which  is  about  three  miles  wide,  is  Khan  Minyeli, 
near  the  large  spring  of  Ain  et  Tin,  which  is  evidently  the 
fountain  of  Capernaum  mentioned  by  Josephus  as  on  this  plain  ; 
and  the  ruins  on  a  low  mound  a  short  distance  soutli  of  the 
khan  and  fountain  in  all  probability  mark  the  site  of  Caper- 
naum, the  adopted  "  city  "  of  Jesus.  This  is  on  the  great  Da- 
mascus road,  in  a  well-watered,  fertile  plain  ;  and  if  Capernaum 
was  "upon  the  sea-coast"  in  "the  land  of  Gennesaretli,"  a 


HEROD   DESTROYING   THE    BOBBERS. 


SITE   OF   CAPEKNAUM.  267 

Matthew  affirms,  it  must  have  been  here,  and  could  not  have 
been  at  Tel  Hum.  Quaresmius  states  positively  that  it  was  bj 
this  khan.  Dr.  Robinson  also  locates  it  here,  and  the  Pales- 
tine Exploration  Society  have  lately  found  the  very  name,  pre- 
served by  the  natives  and  applied  to  these  ruins ;  which  are  not 
very  extensive,  most  of  the  material  having  been  carried  away 
to  build  up  Tiberias. 

But  how  terrible  the  judgments  of  God  on  the  cities  up- 
braided by  Christ !  Capernaum,  once  "  exalted  unto  lieaven," 
now  thrust  down  so  low  its  very  name  and  site  are  in  dispute. 
As  for  Chorazin  and  Bethsaida,  they  had  been  entirely  oblit- 
erated, not  a  living  soul  upon  the  site  of  either  of  these  cities. 
All  is  desolation,  death,  and  ruin.    'What  a  woe  befell  them  ! 

Every  spot  along  the  shores  of  this  lake  seemed  to  be  holy 
ground.  Here  the  Saviour  spent  most  of  his  public  life ;  here 
he  wrought  his  greatest  miracles ;  and  it  was  here  he  chose  his 
twelve  apostles.  How  the  hours  flew  as  we  wandered  along 
the  beach,  picking  up  pebbles,  and  plucking  wild  flowers  from 
every  sacred  spot.  Many  wild  ducks,  geese,  pelicans,  and  other 
water-fowl  were  swimming  about  on  its  surface,  and  in  the 
neighboring  jungle,  at  night,  could  be  heard  the  howl  of  the 
wolf  or  cry  of  the  panther,  jackal,  and  leopard,  fulfilling  most 
literally  the  prophecies  concerning  this  land.* 

If  these  prophecies  had  been  written  yesterday,  they  could 
not  more  correctly  and  graphically  describe  the  present  condi- 
tion of  this  sea  and  its  surroundings.  Every  prediction  lias 
become  an  historic  fact.  And  in  the  ruins  of  the  cities  that 
once  stood  upon  its  shores  we  have  an  argument  in  support  of 
the  divine  record  tliat  all  the  ingenuity  of  modern  criticism 
and  scientific  skepticism  can  never  overthrow. 

'  Leviticus  xxvi,  22-35. 


268  BIBLE   LANDS. 

Crossing  a  lofty  ridge,  with  Safed — "  the  city  set  on  a  hill " — 
to  the  west,  we  stopped  for  lunch  at  Khan  Jubb  Ynsiiff — the 
Khan  of  Joseph — said  to  inclose  the  pit  into  which  Joseph  was 
thrown  by  his  brethren,  though  we  think  Dothan  has  stronger 
claims ;  camping  at  night  on  the  banks  of  Nahr  Hendaj,  a 
mountain  stream  that  flows  into  Lake  Huleh,  the  "  Waters  of 
Merom,"  where  Joshua  slew  Jabin,  king  of  Ilazor.' 

Next  morning  we  arose  early,  and,  riding  round  the  west 
ehore  of  the  lake,  hugging  closely  the  rocky  hills  to  avoid  the 
great  marsh  that  surrounds  this  lake,  we  crossed  a  rich  but 
fiwampy  plain,  black  with  grazing  herds  of  buffalo,  and  sicken- 
ing from  the  stench  of  numerous  carcasses,  the  effects  of  a  late 
storm  that  destroyed  many  of  these  beasts,  upon  which  scores 
of  eagles  and  vultures  were  preying;  illustrating  the  saying, 
"  Wheresoever  the  carcass  is,  there  will  the  eagles  be  gathered 
together."  After  passing  the  Lebanon  branch  of  the  Jordan 
on  an  old  Roman  bridge,  we  came  in  a  few  miles  to  Tell  el 
Kady — the  Dan  of  Scripture — one  of  the  sources  of  the  Jordan, 
and  largest  fountain  in  Syria,  where  we  lunched  under  the 
ehade  of  a  grand  old  terebinth,  standing  directly  over  the 
spring,  and  shading  with  its  broad  branches  the  portal  of  the 
river  of  God.  Here  stood  ancient  Dan,  the  most  northern 
city  in  Palestine  proper ;  here  Jeroboam  built  his  temple  and 
set  up  his  golden  calf,  and  it  was  here  Abraham,  centuries 
before,  rescued  his  nephew  Lot  and  defeated  the  Mesopotamian 
kings  on  their  retreat  from  the  Jordan  valley. 

Our  ride  from  Dan  to  Banias,  or  Csesarea  Philippi,  the  other 
source  of  the  Jordan,  where  we  encamped  for  the  night,  lay 
through  a  lovely  district,  shaded  with  terebinths  and  the  "oaks 
-of  Bashan."     As  we  were  riding  along,  admiring  the  beautiful 

'  Joshua  xi,  6. 


ANCIENT   DAN. 


271 


ficenery,  our  attention  was  arrested  by  a  Bedouin  in  gay  attire 
on  a  swift  dromedary,  hurrpng  by  us  as  if  on  some  important 
mission.  In  a  few  minutes  he  halted,  and,  taking  his  position 
by  the  road-side,  saluted,  in  the  most  profound  manner,  each 
one  of  our  party  as  we  passed  along.  On  inquiring  the  mean- 
ing of  all  this  civility,  we  were  informed  by  our  dragoman 
that  the  Arab  was  the  Sheik  of  that  territory,  and  wished  to 
show  all  respect  to  the  Americans  passing  through  his  country. 


SWIFT   DROMEDARY. 


Our  tents  were  pitched  in  an  olive  grove,  near  where  the  Jor~ 
dan  issues  from  the  mountain,  and  during  the  night  we  were 
much  disturbed  by  the  jackals  and  other  wild  beasts  that  kept 
howling  round  our  camp.  Mr.  Holman  Hunt,  the  eminent 
artist,  encamped  one  night  in  this  same  grove,  and,  being  dis- 
turbed about  midnight  by  some  noise,  looked  out  of  his  tent, 
and  saw  a  large  hyena  in  the  camp  snuffing  the  breath  of  the 
muleteers,  who  were  sleeping  on  the  ground,  by  putting  its 
nose  to  their  mouths.     This  was  done  to  ascertain  whether  they 


272 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


were  dead  or  alive.  Finding  them  alive,  the  hyena  walked 
leisurely  away,  as,  fortunately,  this  animal  feeds  only  on  putrid 
flesh. 

As  Minerva  leaped  full  armed  from  the  brain  of  Jove,  so 
the  Jordan  here  bursts  a  full  river  from  its  hidden  source,  and, 
sweeping  on  in  its  course  for  two  hundred  miles,  plunges  into 
the  Sea  of  Death,  and  is  seen  no  more.  Beautiful  symbol  of 
man's  career !  The  most  remarkable  river  in  the  world,  flowing 
throughout  its  entire  length  beneath  the  level  of  the  sea. 


C^SAREA    PHILIPPI. 


Csesarea  Philippi  occupies  one  of  the  most  picturesque  sites 
in  Syria,  being  situated  on  a  terrace  at  the  foot  of  Hermon,  in 
the  midst  of  olive  groves  and  forests  of  oak,  gladdened  by 
numerous  springs  and  waterfalls.  It  derived  its  name  from 
Caesar  Tiberius  and  Philip  the  Tetrarch,  son  of  Herod  the 
Great.  This  region  was  the  great  seat  of  idolatry  among  the 
ancients,  and  the  whole  country  is  dotted  with  the  remains  of 
old  pagan  temples.  When  the  Canaanites  yet  held  the  land 
there  was  a  temple  here  dedicated  to  Baal-gad;  and  just  above 


C^SAREA  PHILIPPI.  273 

the  principal  fountain  there  is  a  large  grotto  in  the  face  of  the 
mountain,  once  used  bj  the  Greeks  as  a  temple  for  the  wor- 
ship of  Pan,  as  niches  in  the  sides  of  the  cliff  and  numerous 
inscriptions  fully  attest ;  here,  also,  stood  the  magnificent  tem-^ 
pie  built  by  Herod  the  Great,  and  dedicated  to  Augustus  Caesar,, 
where  Titus,  after  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  was  feted  by 
Agrippa,  and  returned  thanks  to  his  god  for  the  success  of  his 
campaign.  All  these  temples  of  Baal,  Pan,  and  Caesar  are- 
no  w  gone,  but  the  rock  on  which  they  stood  remains  unchanged,, 
and  on  this  solid  platform  Christ  may  have  stood,  and  to  this- 
firm  foundation  may  have  referred  when  he  laid  the  corner- 
stone of  our  Zion,  and  said  to  his  disciples,  "  Upon  this  rock  I 
will  build  my  Church  ;  and  the  gates  of  hell  shall  not  j)revail 
against  it ; "  *  beantifuUy  setting  forth  the  stability  and  per- 
petuity of  his  kingdom.  Eusebius,  who  visited  this  city  at  the 
close  of  the  third  century,  says  that  the  afilicted  woman  who 
had  vainly  "  spent  all  her  living  on  physicians,"  and  who  was 
healed  by  merely  touching  the  border  of  Christ's  garment,*  was^ 
a  native  of  this  place  ;  that  her  house  was  still  standing  in  his 
day  ;  and  that  the  incident  was  commemorated  by  two  bronze 
statues  which  he  saw  elevated  on  a  stone  base  at  the  entrance 
to  her  house,  one  representing  "  the  woman  on  her  knees,  with 
her  hands  stretched  out  before  her,  like  one  entreating,"  the 
other,  of  "  Christ,  standing  erect,  clad  in  a  mantle,  and  stretch- 
ing out  his  hand  to  the  woman." '  It  is  said  these  monuments 
were  destroyed  by  Julian  the  Apostate.  If  not,  tliey  may  still 
be  buried  beneath  the  debris  of  the  old  city,  and  some  day  may 
be  recovered. 

This  same  author  gives  an  interesting  description  of  the  cave 
and  fountain  we  have   mentioned.      He  says :  "  At  Caesarea. 

'  Matthew  xvi,  18.        '  Luke  viii,  43.        *  Eusebius,  book  vi,  chapter  18. 


274 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


Philippi,  whicli  is  called  Banias  bj  the  Phoenicians,  there  are 
springs  shown  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain  from  which  the 
Jordan  rises,  and  that  on  a  certain  festival  day  there  was 
usually  a  person  thrown  into  these  springs,  and  that  the  victim, 
by  the  power  of  some  demon,  in  a  wonderful  manner  entirely 


BANIAS    AND    GROTTO. 


disappeared."  Josephus,  also,  in  referring  to  this  grotto,'  de- 
scribes it  "  as  a  very  fine  cave  in  the  mountain,  under  which 
is  a  great  cavity  in  the  earth,  and  that  the  cavern  is  abrupt 
and  prodigiously  deep,  and  full  of  still  water.  Herod  adorned 
this  place,  which  was  already  a  very  remarkable  one,  still 
'  Antiquities,  xv,  10 ;  Jewish  Wars,  i,  21. 


MOUNT  OF  TRANSFIGURATION.  275 

further,  by  the  erection  of  a  temple  of  ,\vhite  marble  by  the 
fountains  of  the  Jordan,  which  he  dedicated  to  Caesar.  The 
place  is  called  Panium,  and  beneath  it  a  dark  cave  opens  itself, 
within  which  is  a  horrible  precipice  whicli  descends  abruptly 
to  a  vast  depth.  It  contains  a  mighty  quantity  of  water,  which 
is  immovable  ;  and  when  any  thing  is  let  down  to  measure  the 
depth  of  the  earth  beneath  the  water,  no  length  of  cord  is 
sufficient  to  reach  it."  Could  this  legend  and  cavern  have 
suggested  to  John  his  imagery  of  the  *'  bottomless  pit ; "  and 
the  Jordan  flowing  from  its  mysterious  source  beneath  Her- 
mon,  which  is  more  than  probably  the  Mount  of  Transfigura- 
tion, his  beautiful  description  of  "  the  river  of  life,  clear  as 
crystal,  proceeding  out  of  the  throne  of  God  and  of  the 
Lamb  ?  "  '  The  Jordan,  after  issuing  from  the  mountain  in  a 
succession  of  sparkling  cascades,  flows  down  the  valley,  giving 
life,  beauty,  and  fertility  to  the  most  charming  landscape  ; 
and  in  the  midst  of  it,  "  and  on  either  side  of  the  river," 
are  all  manner  of  tropical  trees  yielding  their  fruits  every 
month,  and  the  leaves  of  tlie  trees  are  still  used  "  for  the 
healing  of  the  nations."  Very  suggestive  of  Paradise ;  and 
may  not  this  lovely  spot  have  been  a  part  of  the  garden  planted 
by  the  Lord,"  wherein  the  opening  scene  in  the  history  of  our 
race  transpired  ? 

Breaking  camp  at  an  early  hour,  we  crossed  the  valley  on  a 
stone  bridge,  and,  riding  round  the  walls  and  through  the  city, 
soon  began  the  long  zigzag  ascent  of  Hermon,  the  highest  peak 
of  the  Anti-Lebanon  range,  passing  on  our  way  the  old  Phoeni- 
cian castle  of  Subeibeh,  one  of  the  grandest  ruins  in  Syria,  and 
the  last  stronghold  of  the  Crusaders.  After  hours  of  climbing, 
when  near  the  summit  we  came  upon  vast  fields  of   drifted 

'  Revelation  xxii,  1.  "  Genesis  ii,  8. 

18 


276 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


snow ;  deeper  and  deeper  it  became  as  we  advanced.  Our 
horses  soon  began  to  labor,  then  plunge,  finally  they  stuck  fast 
and  were  unable  to  proceed.  Holding  a  consultation,  it  was 
determined  to  try  a  path  to  the  left,  but  we  soon  found  it  im- 
practicable.    Kext,  we  tried  to  force  a  passage  over  the  ridge, 


CASTLK    SUBEIBEH. 


but  here  met  with  a  high  precipice  over  which  it  was  impossi- 
ble to  go.  The  day  was  intensely  hot,  the  reflection  of  the 
sun  on  the  snow  blistering  our  faces.  In  one  place  we  came 
upon  the  remains  of  a  flock  of  sheep  that  had  been  devoured 
by  wolves,  and  we  had  reasons  for  apprehending  a  similar  fate. 
It  was  a  perilous  hour.     Lofty  mountains  surrounded  us.     In 


MOUNT    OF   TRANSFIGURATION. 


277 


our  fruitless  efforts  to  get  througli  we  lost  our  way.  It  was 
now  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and  we  were  five  hours  from 
our  camping-ground.  Something  must  be  done,  or  the  party 
perish.  At  last  we  made  a  detour  to  the  right  down  the 
mountain,  over  fields  of  lava,  and  through  drifts  of  snow,  our 
poor  horses  struggling,  falling,  bleeding,  almost  dying,  when 
we  fortunately  struck  a  path  that  led  round  the  southern  base 
of  the  mountain,  reaching  our  tents  at  Kefr  Hauwar,  near  the 
traditional  tomb  of  Nimrod,  the  mighty  hunter,  about  an  hour 
after  dark,  faint  and  hungry,  but  thankful  for  our  safe  passage 
of  Hermon.  The  ladies  of  our  party,  Mrs.  A.  K.  Riddle,  of 
Cincinnati,  and  my  wife,  showed  gTeat  bravery  in  plunging 
through  snow-drifts,  almost  burying  their  horses.  We  reached 
Damascus  by  noon  the  following  day,  but  shall  reserve  for 
another  place  a  description  of  this,  among  the  oldest  cities  in 
the  world. 


WATJiK-WUiiiiL,  FOK    IHKHiAlION 


CHAPTER  XV. 


DOWN     TO     JERICHO 


The  Inn  by  the  Way-aide — Going  up  to  Adummim — Brook  Cherith — Valley  of 
Achor — Site  of  Gilgal — Passage  of  the  Jordan — Place  of  Christ's  Baptism — 
Pilgrims  Bathing — Ancient  Jericho — Singular  Tradition — Quarantania — 
Mount  of  Temptation — Bone  Caverns. 

a  "PvOWX  to  Jericho,"  from  Jerusalem,  is  a  trip  taken  by 

-L'  almost  every  traveler  visiting  Palestine.     The  distance 

is  perhaps  sixteen  miles,  and  the  descent  near  four  thousand 

feet,  Jericho  being  about  one  thousand  feet  below  the  ocean 

level.     The  road  lies  through  the  "  Wilderness  of  Judea,"  and 

the  journey  is  still  full  of  perils,  from  the  roughness  of  the 

way  and  the  wild  Arabs  every-where  to  be  seen  skulking  among 

the  rocks,  ready  to  pounce  upon  any  wayfaring  man  courageous 

enough  to  venture  into  these  forbidden  grounds  without  proper 

guards. 

On  leaving  Jerusalem  and  going  out  at  St.  Stephen's  gate, 

you  cross  the  Kedron  on  a  stone  bridge  near  the  Garden  of 

Gethsemane,  and,  sweeping  round  Olivet  below  the  tombs  of 

the  prophets,  in  half  an  hour  you  are  at  Bethany,  once  the 

humble  home  of  the  Son  of  God  in  the  hospitable  family  of 

Martha,  Mary,  and  Lazarus.     From  here  you  descend  rapidly 

to  En-Shemesh — the  Fountain  of  the  Sun — a  fine  spring  now 

known  as  the  "  Well  of  the  Apostles,"  issuing  from  the  eastern 

face  of  a  rocky  ridge,  and  one  of  the  old  landmarks  between 

Judah  and  Benjamin. 

Following  for  two   hours  the  meanderings  of  the   stream 
278 


BROOK  CHERITH  AND  VALLEY  OF  ACHOR. 


279 


flowing  from  this  fountain,  you  come  to  the  traditional  site  of 
the  "  inn  by  the  way-side,"  where  the  good  Samaritan  left  the 
wounded  man  who  had  fallen  among  thieves.  The  spot  is 
marked  by  the  remains  of  an  old  klian,  where  you  can  lunch 
under  the  shadow  of  the  great  rock,  the  only  shelter  to  be  found 
in  this,  the  most  desolate  and  dangerous  part  of  the  route.  This 
wild  district  is  "  the  going  up  to  Adummim,"  and  is  proverbial 


THE  BLOODY  WAY. 


for  its  bloody  deeds.  St.  Jerome  calls  it  "  the  red,  or  bloody 
way,"  and  a  deep  ravine  through  which  the  road  winds  is  still 
known  as  the  "  Murderer's  Glen. "  Here  Sir  Frederick  Hen- 
niker,  a  few  years  since,  was  stripped  and  left  for  dead  by  the 
road-side ;  and  still  later,  Dr.  Leyburn,  of  Baltimore,  Md.,  was 
robbed  by  the  Bedouins,  who  to  the  present  infest  this  lonely, 
uncultivated  region.     It  was  to  protect  pilgrims  going  over  this 


280 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


dangerous  road  that  the  order  of  Knight  Templars  was  first 
organized,  an  office  now  performed  by  the  Abu  Dis  tribe  of 
Arabs,  with  whom  we  have  a  regular  treaty,  guaranteeing  the 
protection  of  Americans  passing  through  their  territory. 


DOWN    TO    JERICHO. 


No  scenery  in  Palestine  is  wilder  or  grander  than  from 
Adummim  to  Jericho — mountains  heaped onmountainsinendless 
confusion.  The  road  now  winding  through  tortuous  glens,  then 
over  bold  peaks  and  along  the  brink  of  fearful  precipices,  ren- 
dering one  dizzy  peering  down  into  the  seemingly  bottomless 
depths.  From  one  point  the  view  is  unsurpassed.  Spread  out 
before  you  is  the  whole  Jordan  valley,  with  the  purple-tinted 


VALLEY   OF-  THE   JORDAN.  281 

Mountains  of  Moab  beyond.  On  your  right  may  be  seen  the 
Dead  Sea,  rolling  its  leaden  waves  over  the  supposed  site  of 
the  guilty  "  Cities  of  the  Plain,"  with  a  sleepy  haze  floating 
on  the  water,  as  if  "  the  smoke  of  their  torment "  was  still 
ascending  to  heaven  ;  and  on  your  left  is  Wady  Kelt,  or  Yalley 
of  Aclior — a  deep  rocky  gorge  through  which  the  brook  Clie- 
rith  cuts  its  way,  and  where  Achan  was  stoned  to  death  for  his 
ijovetousness.  The  descent  here  is  very  steep — the  mountain 
breaking  away  abruptly  down  to  the  plain,  rendering  the  ap- 
proach to  Jericho  from  the  west  very  difiicult.  In  places  the 
old  paved  Roman  road  may  still  be  seen ;  undoubtedly  the  same 
over  which  the  "Man  of  sorrows"  once  pursued  his  weary 
way,  and  by  the  side  of  which  poor  Bairtimeus  sat  when  the 
Light  of  the  world  passed  before  him  and  dispelled  the  dark- 
ness forever  from  his  sightless  eyes/ 

About  sundown  we  crossed  the  Yalley  of  Achor,  and  found 
our  tents  pitched  on  the  banks  of  the  "  brook  Cherith,"  where 
Elijah  was  fed  by  the  ravens,  or  Arabs  of  Oreb — a  village  not 
far  from  this — ^just  as  you  please. 

The  Jordan  valley  at  this  point  is  from  ten  to  fifteen  miles 
wide,  the  soil — if  we  except  the  nitrous  plain  bordering  the 
Dead  Sea — rich  "  as  the  garden  of  the  Lord,"  and  "  well 
watered,"  as  when  Lot  chose  it  for  his  inheritance  before  the 
overthrow  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah.  Ko  less  than  six  springs, 
any  one  of  them  sufficient  to  run  a  mill,  and  the  remains  of 
twelve  ancient  aqueducts  for  irrigating  the  plains,  may  still  be 
seen  in  this  immediate  vicinity. 

As  there  is  no  river  so  hallowed  in  its  associations  as  the 
Jordan,  having  been  thrice  miraculously  divided,  so  there  is  no 
valley  like  that  through  which  this  renowned  river,  winds  its 

»  Mark  x,  46, 


282  BIBLE  LANDS. 

tortuous  way,  from  its  mysterious  source  beneath  the  base  of 
Hermon  to  where  it  phinges  into  the  Sea  of  Death  to  be  seen  no 
more.  We  have  here  an  immense  fissure,  unparalleled  in  the 
world — a  depression  of  more  than  a  thousand  feet  below  the 
level  of  the  ocean,  and  which,  apparently,  must  have  existed 
before  the  destruction  of  the  Cities  of  the  Plain.  Various 
conflicting  theories  of  its  formation  have  been  advanced,  but 
scarcely  any  reliable  facts  have  been  furnished.  It  is  evidently, 
however,  of  volcanic  origin,  as  the  whole  valley  is  one  vast 
field  of  lava. 

The  entire  length  of  this  Ghor  does  not  exceed  one  hundred 
miles  in  a  direct  line,  and  yet  in  that  short  distance  we  have 
every  variety  of  climate  and  production  found  between  Green- 
land and  the  equator.  Standing  on  the  Plain  of  Jericho,  you 
can  see,  to  the  north,  mountains  covered  with  snow  the  year 
round ;  and  to  the  south,  fields  growing  every  plant  and  fruit 
of  the  tropics. 

The  Jordan,  that  waters  this  valley,  is  very  rapid,  having  a 
descent  of  over  three  thousand  feet  from  the  springs  of  Hasbeiya, 
its  remotest  source,  to  where  it  empties  into  the  Salt  Sea. 
And  this  river  is  so  rapid  its  course  is  almost  one  continuous 
cataract,  and  so  crooked  and  broken  by  these  numerous  falls  as 
to  render  it  useless  for  commercial  purposes.  No  vessels  have 
ever  navigated  its  waters,  and  not  a  city  has  ever  flourished  on 
its  banks.     A  strange  river,  with  a  strange  history. 

As  a  winter  resort,  I  know  of  no  place  more  inviting  than 
the  valley  of  the  lower  Jordan.  Here  we  enjoy  a  salubrious 
climate,  with  perpetual  summer,  rendering  those  familiar  lines 
of  Dr.  Watts, 

"  Sweet  fields  beyond  the  swelling  flood 
Stand  dressed  in  living  green," 


SITE   OF  GILGAL.  283 

literally  true  of  this  region,  when  viewed  from  the  mountains 
east  of  the  river. 

During  our  visit  we  witnessed  here  a  singular  phenomenon. 
Dark  clouds  and  a  furious  rain-storm  swept  along  the  Judean 
Mountains  to  the  west,  and  the  Mountains  of  Moab  to  the  east, 
shutting  out  both  ranges  completely  from  our  view ;  while  on 
the  Plain  of  Jericho  the  sun  was  brightly  shining — the  valley 
of  the  Jordan,  like  a  zone  of  light,  separating  the  combating 
elements  on  either  side. 

Among  the  most  important  discoveries  made  by  the  English 
Exploring  Society  is  that  of  Gilgal,  the  first  encampment  of 
the  Israelites  in  Canaan.  This  place  was  considered  by  Dr. 
Robinson  as  forever  lost.  But  traces  of  the  name  and  site  have 
lately  been  found  at  Tell  Jiljul,  about  one  and  a  half  miles  east 
of  the  old  tower  known  as  the  house  of  Zaccheus,  in  El  Riha, 
or  modern  Jericho,  which  agrees  exactly  with  the  location  given 
by  Josephus  and  Joshua.  As  the  name  indicates,  we  find  here 
an  undulating  plain  above  the  overflow  of  the  Jordan,  and  pre- 
cisely on  '•  the  east  border  of  Jericho ; "  the  natives  of  the 
Ghor  never  cultivating  the  land  eastward  of  this  point.  The 
spot  is  marked  by  a  large  tamarisk-tree  near  an  old  reservoir 
called  Birket  Jiljulieh.  Ther  eare  also  other  ruins,  and  many 
little  mounds  scattered  over  the  plain,  more  than  likely  the 
ash-beds  of  the  Israelites'  camp-fires. 

If  this  is  really  Gilgal — and  there  seems  no  ground  for  doubt- 
ing it — what  solemn  recollections  the  spot  awakens !  Here  "  the 
Captain  of  the  Lord's  host  "  appeared  to  Joshua,  and  the  twelve 
memorial  stones  were  set  up  by  the  children  of  Israel  in  com- 
memoration of  their  safe  passage  of  the  Jordan.  Here  they 
kept  the  Passover,  and  pitched  the  tabernacle  for  the  first  time 
in  the  Land  of  Promise.     Here  the  manna  ceased,  and  for  the 


284 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


first  time  tliej  ate  of  the  corn  and  fruit  of  the  land  they  were 
lienceforth  to  possess.  Here,  also,  the  male  children  born  dur- 
ing their  wanderings  in  the  wilderness  were  circumcised,  and 
in  confirmation  of  the  identity  of  the  place  some  of  the  flint- 


FLIXT   KXIVES. 


knives,  probably  used  in  the  operation,  have  here  lately  been 
discovered,  similar  in  every  respect  to  those  found  in  the  tomb 
of  Joshua  at  Timnath-Serah. 

This  site  is  about  five  miles  from  the  Jordan,  and  on  the 
direct  road  from  where  the  Hebrews  crossed  to  Jericho.  The 
river  at  this  point,  during  its  low  stage,  is  not  over  fifty  yards 
wide  and  four  or  five  feet  deep.  This  is  the  traditionary 
place  of  our  Lord's  baptism,  of  the  healing  of  Xaaman,  and 
where  Elijah  passed  over  just  before  he  mounted  the  skies  in 
his  chariot  of  fire ;  and  it  is  here  the  ceremony  of  the  pilgrims 
bathing  in  the  Sacred  River  is  witnessed  during  the  Paschal 
Moon,  from  year  to  year.  On  the  Monday  of  Passion  week 
the  number  is  incredible.  Hundreds  of  tents  dot  the  plain, 
and  thousands  of  pilgoms  from  every  part  of  the  Orient,  some 
on  foot,  others  on  horses — sometimes  a  whole  family  on  a  mule 
or  camel — come  to  perform  this  religious  rite.  They  usually 
first  encamp  on  the  higher  banks  of  the  Jordan  near  Jericho, 
recalling  the  tents  of  Israel  wlien  first  pitched  near  this  same 
spot,  and  in  the  early  dawn,   by  the  light  of  the  moon  and 


SITE   OF  ANCIENT  JERICHO. 


287 


numerous  torches,  guarded  by  Turkish  soldiers,  they  resume 
their  pilgrimage  for  the  river,  and  as  the  first  rays  of  the  morn- 
ing sun  flash  along  the  Judean  Mountains  the  mixed  multitude, 
men,  women,  and  children — red,  black,  and  white — plunge  into 
the  turbid  waters,  in  the  firm  though  superstitious  faith  that 
all  their  sins  shall  be  washed  away.  Some  bathe  entirely 
nude,  but  most  of  them  in  white  dresses,  which  they  carefully 


SITE   OF  AKCIEXT   JERICHO. 


preserve,  and  never  wear  again 
until  attired  therein  for  their  burial.  With  them,  the  great 
end  of  life  has  been  attained.  They  have  made  the  pilgrimage 
of  the  Holy  Land  ;  have  bathed  in  the  sacred  Jordan ;  and  now 
have  nothing  more  to  do  but  return  home  and  die. 

Happily,  there  is  no  difficulty  in  determining  the  site  of 
Jericho— the  famous  "  City  of  Palm-trees  "—the  first  city  taken 
by  Joshua  in  the  conquest  of  the  country.  "  The  Fountain  of 
Elisha,"  a  magnificent  spring  gushing  from  beneath  a  partly 


/ 


288      '  BIBLE   LANDS. 

artificial  knoll,  is  undoubtedly  the  same  whose  bitter  waters 
were  healed  by  the  prophet  whose  name  it  bears,  and  settles 
the  site  of  ancient  Jericho.  Tlie  remains  of  buildings,  and  the 
line  of  the  old  walls,  may  also  be  traced,  inclosing  several  arti- 
ficial mounds,  the  largest  having  an  elevation  of  at  least  one 
hundred  feet.  Some  of  these  hillocks,  in  their  interior,  are  of 
stone,  others  of  sun-dried  brick,  and  evidently  belong  to  the 
Canaanitish  period,  and  were  constructed  either  for  defensive 
purposes  or  as  high  places  for  the  worship  of  their  gods.  The 
walls  of  the  city  were  rudely  built  of  undressed  stone,  and 
could  not  have  been  more  than  two  miles  round. 

Not  a  vestige  of  the  house  of  "  Rahab  the  harlot "  is  left ; 
nor  are  we  to  suppose  that  this  woman,  who  concealed  the 
spies,  was  any  thing  more  than  the  keeper  of  the  inn  of  the 
place.  She  is  called  "  harlot "  because  inn-keepers  of  old  were 
generally  of  that  class.  Rahab,  however,  must  have  been  an 
exception,  as  she  subsequently  married  a  prince  in  Judah,  and 
became  the  mother  of  Boaz,  who  was  husband  of  Ruth  and 
head  of  the  house  of  David,  through  whom,  in  the  fullness  of 
time,  the  Messiah  came. 

The  overthrow  of  the  place  was  complete — not  a  house  of 
any  kind  marks  the  spot.  Occasionally  a  few  gypsy  tents  may 
be  seen  among  the  ruins,  but,  owing  to  the  curse  pronounced 
upon  it  by  Joshua,  all  efforts  to  rebuild  the  city  have  proved 
abortive.  And,  what  is  remarkable,  we  find  all  the  facts  of  the 
taking  of  this  stronghold  preserved  in  a  curious  legend  com- 
mon among  the  Bedouins  of  the  plain. 

The  Arabs  say  that  there  once  stood  upon  this  site  a  city  of 
brass;  that  it  was  inhabited  by  infidels  and  surrounded  by 
seven  walls.  Imam  Aly  made  war  against  the  infidels,  and, 
mounting  his  horse,  Meimoun,  rode  around  the  city  seven  times,. 


QUARANTANIA.  289 

and  blew  down  the  walls  with  a  blast  of  his  liorn,  the  ramparts 
falling  of  their  own  accord,  stone  by  stone.  The  day  was 
drawing  to  a  close,  and  Aly,  fearing  the  infidels  might  escape, 
prayed  to  the  sun,  "  Return,  O  blessed  light,"  and  the  sun 
rolled  back,  and  went  not  down  till  all  the  inhabitants  were 
destroyed.  Here  we  have  the  leading  features  of  the  fall  of 
Jericho  and  of  Joshua's  victory  over  the  Amorites,  in  the  very 
legends  of  the  country. 

In  the  mountain  just  back  of  the  ruins  are  many  caves, 
where  the  two  spies  could  easily  have  hidden  for  three  days 
from  their  pursuers ;  and  on  a  low  spur  of  this  mountain  is 
where  "the  sons  of  the  prophets"  are  supposed  to  have  stood 
when  they  beheld  Elijah  go  up  in  the  whirlwind  to  heaven. 

The  Jericho  of  Christ's  day,  and  where  Herod  the  Great  died, 
was  about  one  and  a  half  miles  south  of  this.  Nothing,  how- 
ever, remains  of  this  once  opulent  city  except  a  large  reservoir, 
perhaps  the  same  in  which  Aristobulus  was  drowned,  with 
some  broken  aqueducts,  and  other  extensive  ruins ;  enough  to 
identify  the  place,  and  show  the  vanity  of  man's  greatest  monu- 
ments. 

Directly  back  of  Elisha's  Fountain,  and  about  six  miles  west  // 
of  the  river,  overlooking  ancient  Jericho  and  the  whole  valley 
of  the  Jordan,  rises  one  of  the  highest  mountains  of  the  Judean 
range,  the  traditionary  scene  of  Christ's  temptation  and  fast  of 
forty  days  in  the  wilderness.  This  mountain,  at  least  since  the 
third  century,  has  been  regarded  with  peculiar  interest  as  the 
locality  of  the  interview  between  Satan  and  our  Saviour ; '  and 
round  its  base,  during  the  ascetic  age  that  followed  the  bloody 
persecutions  of  the  early  Christians,  the  first  monasteries  were 
erected.     The  remains  of  no  less  than  seven  of  these  monastic 

'  Matthew  iv,  8. 


290  BIBLE   LAXDS. 

institutions,  some  of  tliem  equal  to  palace?  in  grandeur,  may 
still  be  seen  in  this  vicinity. 

The  eastern  face  of  tlie  mountain  is,  in  places,  almost  perpen- 
dicular, and  on  its  towering  summit,  where  the  eagle  delights 
to  build  her  nest  and  soar  in  her  airy  flight,  are  the  ruins  of  a 
Christian  Church  and  strong  fortress  with  rock-hewn  fosse — the 
latter,  probably,  of  the  crusading  period.  The  sides  of  this  cliff 
are  pierced  by  numerous  natural  grottoes,  to  which  many  of  the 
disciples  of  our  Lord,  "  of  whom  the  world  was  not  worthy," 
fled  for  safety  when  driven  by  their  enemies  into  the  "  dens 
and  caves  of  the  earth." '  In  time,  others  followed  them 
from  choice,  among  whom  were  many  monks  from  Egypt,  cut- 
ting for  themselves  cells  in  the  limestone  rock,  until  the  whole 
mountain  became  burrowed  like  an  ant-hill.  There  are  hun- 
dreds, if  not  thousands,  of  these  caves,  natural  and  artiflcial, 
not  cut  in  regular  galleries,  but  here,  there,  every-where,  to  suit 
the  inclination  of  their  inmates ;  many  of  them  inaccessible,  and 
most  of  them  dangerous  to  approach.  The  wonder  is,  how  the 
old  monks  managed  to  reach  their  little  cells,  or  to  live  when 
there,  unless  fed  by  the  angels  or  ravens,  as  was  Elijah,  the 
illustrious  founder,  as  they  claim,  of  their  order. 

By  a  zigzag  path  and  rock-hewn  steps  we  succeeded  in  reach- 
ing a  platform  running  along  the  face  of  the  mountain,  which 
in  places  overhung  the  path,  affording  to  the  hermits  protec- 
tion in  their  walks  from  the  sun  and  rain.  At  the  southern 
end  of  this  ledge  we  came  to  a  large  cavern  communicating  with 
a  chapel  and  several  small  grottoes.  The  chapel  had  been 
frescoed,  after  the  Bj^zantine  style,  the  coloring  in  places  still 
looking,  fresh,  and  some  of  the  paintings  easily  recognized,  one 
of  Christ  being  very  distinct.     St.  Paul  and  Andrew  appeared 

'  Hebrews  xi,  38. 


MOUNT  OF  TEMPTATION. 


291 


to  be  favorite  subjects ;  but  we  could  see  no  trace  of  the  Virgin 
and  Child.  The  most  curious  fresco  was  a  representation  of  the 
angels  distributing  white  resurrection  robes  to  the  saints. 

"We  found  a  Greek  monk  from  Xew  York  living  here,  who 
took  us  to  many  other  cells.  One  was  known  as  Elijah's,  the 
approach  to  which  was  by  a  narrow  staircase  cut  in  the  natural 
rock.     Tliere  were  several  apartments  here,  one  above  another, 


.  QUAEAXTAXIA — MOUNT    OF    TEMPTATION. 

the  only  entrance  being   through  a  hole  eigliteen   inches   in 

■diameter  cut  in  the  ceiling  of  the  lower  cave,  and  which  could 

only  be  reached  by  a  ladder  or  rope.     Even  after  climbing  up 

to  this  opening,  we  found  it  exceedingly  difficult  to  squeeze 

our  small  bodies  through  the  contracted  entrance.     This  second 

■chamber  was  a  chapel  with  an  inscription  over  the  altar,  and 

the  entire  room  at  one  time  had  been  beautifully  frescoed  ;  but 

the  paintings  and  inscription  were  too  much  defaced  for  us  to 
19 


292  BIBLE   LANDS. 

make  any  thing  intelligible  out  of  them.  There  were  still  other 
apartments  above  these,  which  we  did  not  explore  ;  and  south 
of  a  rent  in  the  mountain,  still  higher  up,  numerous  grottoes, 
the  access  to  which  was  both  difficult  and  perilous. 

In  reaching  these  aerial  habitations  we  had  to  clamber  from 
rock  to  rock  on  our  hands  and  knees,  till  we  gained  a  shelf,  at 
a  dizzy  height,  where  we  had  just  room  to  stand.  Here  we 
halted  for  breath ;  then,  crawling  along  the  brink  of  the  preci- 
pice on  a  narrow  ledge,  we  came  to  a  projecting  rock  round 
which  it  seemed  impossible  to  pass.  But  others  had  gone  be- 
fore, and  we  must  follow.  Rounding  this  point  was  frightful. 
We  shudder  to  think  of  that  hazardous  feat.  The  path  in 
places  was  so  narrow  that  if  a  fragment  of  the  rock  had  given 
way,  or  we  liad  lost  our  balance,  or  had  our  feet  slipped  but  an 
inch,  instant  death  would  have  followed. 

The  cells  in  this  upper  tier  were  generally  hewn  out  of  the 
rock,  some  nicely  vaulted,  with  recesses  for  sleeping,  and  cis- 
terns to  catch  the  rain-water  as  it  dripped  from  the  cliffs  above ; 
others  had  rock-cut  seats  in  front,  on  one  of  which,  it  is  said, 
Christ  sat,  and  where  the  old  monks  could  sit,  far  up  on  the 
mountain  side,  and  enjoy  a  grand  view  of  the  Plain  of  Jericho 
and  the  Yalley  of  the  Jordan,  with  Pisgah  and  the  Mountains 
of  Moab  beyond.  Most  of  the  caves  have  a  little  window  in 
front  to  admit  light  and  air ;  and  among  these  pious  anchorites 
a  beautiful  custom  prevailed  of  putting  a  light  in  these  win- 
dows at  night,  so  that  the  whole  mountain  seemed  illuminated 
with  vestal  lamps,  as  the  hermits  sat  in  the  doors  of  their  cells 
singing  their  vesper  hymns. 

The  ascent  to  tliese  upper  grottoes  is  now  so  hazardous  few 
persons  will  make  the  attempt,  as  it  can  only  be  accomplished 
by  swinging  with  ropes  from  projecting  crags  over  an  abyss  of 


BONE  CAVERNS.  293 

great  depth,  the  paths  that  once  led  to  them  having  been  either 
tilled  up  with  rubbish  or  washed  away  by  the  storms  of  many 
centuries. 

One  feels  very  solemn  visiting  this  retreat  of  the  early  Chris- 
tians, and  abode  of  those  good  though  mistaken  men,  who, 
through  a  sense  of  duty,  renounced  the  world,  and  withdrew 
from  all  society,  that  they  might  commune  more  closely  with 
God.  In  some  of  the  cells  human  skeletons  were  found,  with 
little  earthen  lamps  by  their  side,  that  had  expired  with  their 
lives,  showing  that  the  old  hermits  died  where  they  lived,  and 
were  buried  where  they  died.  There  are  many  of  these  sepul- 
chral vaults  containing  the  bones  or  dust  of  those  who  had 
spent  their  lives  in  prayer,  fasting,  and  meditation,  in  imitation 
of  the  Master,  who  on  this  same  mount  is  said  to  have  overcome 
the  temptations  of  the  wicked  one. 

This  mountain  is  separated  from  the  main  range  on  the  south 
by  Wady  Kelt,  along  which  there  are  also  numerous  caves,  and 
through  which  the  brook  Cherith  flows ;  so  that  the  locality  of 
Christ's  fasting  was  identical  with  that  of  Elijah's.  Manj'  of 
the  caves  near  the  foot  of  the  mountain  were  formerly  occu- 
pied during  Lent  by  Christian  pilgrims;  but,  owing  to  the  in- 
security of  life  and  property  under  Turkish  rule,  they  are  now 
hiding-places  for  Bedouin  robbers,  or  dens  for  wild  beasts,  and 
in  some  of  them  bones  of  camels,  hyenas,  and  other  animals 
may  be  found  to  the  depth  of  several  feet ;  fully  explaining 
the  formation  of  the  old  bone  caverns  without  disturbing  the 
chronology  of  the  Bible. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE   DEAD  SEA. 

Lowest  Sheet  of  "Water  on  our  Globe — Mountains  of  Pure  Salt — Lot's  Wife — De- 
struction of  the  Cities  of  the  Plain — Site  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah — Identity 
of  Zoar — Singular  Phenomenon — Nature's  Sanitarium. 

¥E  have  made  the  entire  circuit  of  tliis  inland  sea,  in  many 
respects  the  most  remarliable  body  of  water  in  the  woi'ld  ; 
and,  with  the  exception  of  two  places,  where  the  mountains 
rise  almost  perpendicularly  out  of  the  w^ater,  we  rode  along  the 
shore  the  whole  distance,  making  the  journey,  including  delays 
and  necessary  rests,  in  fourteen  days. 

The  sea  covers  an  area  of  perhaps  three  hundred  square 
miles,  and  is  the  lowest  sheet  of  water  on  the  globe,  being 
thirteen  hundred  and  twenty  feet  lower  than  the  ocean  level ; 
and  its  greatest  depth  of  water  thirteen  hundred  and  ten  feet, 
thus  precluding  the  possibility  of  it  ever  having  had  any  con- 
nection through  the  Arabah  with  the  Red  Sea.  Then,  there  is 
a  rocky  ridge  ov^er  twenty-one  hundred  feet  high,  running  en- 
tirely across  Wady  Arabah,  through  which  the  Jordan  never 
could  have  flowed. 

Having  no  outlet,  with  the  Jordan,  Arnon,  and  many  other 

large  streams  flowing  into  it,  there  is  only  a  variation  of  from 

ten  to  fifteen  feet  in  its  elevation  and  depression,  being  highest 

in  the  spring  of  the  year,  after  the  winter  rains-,  thougli  the 

Arabs  say  it  rises  and  falls  of  itself,  the  rain  having  no  eft'eet 

upon  it.     This  equilibrium  is  maintained  solely  by  evaporation. 

The   density  of  the  water  is  very  great,   a   gallon  weighing 
294 


APPLES   OF  SODOM.  295 

twelve  and  a  quarter  pounds,  and  containing,  besides  bromine, 
potassium,  and  other  minerals  in  a  state  of  solution,  three  and  a 
quarter  pounds  of  pure  salt,  or  twenty-eight  percent. ;  while  the 
water  of  the  Atlantic  contains  only  four  per  cent.  Owing  to 
the  buoyancy  of  the  water,  bathing  in  it  is  a  great  luxury  and 
perfectly  safe,  it  being  impossible  for  a  person  to  sink.  An 
egg  that  would  sink  in  the  Mediterranean  will  float  half  out  of 
water  in  this  sea ;  and  a  vessel  which  would  float  with  ease  here 
would  sink  instantly  in  the  Atlantic  or  any  other  ocean.  Of 
course,  no  fish  can  live  in  such  a  briny  deep.  Those  carried 
into  it  by  the  Jordan  instantly  die,  and  may  be  found  floating 
on  the  surface  near  the  mouth  of  the  river.  The  impression 
that  this  sea  is  always  a  dead  calm,  sending  forth  poisonous 
vapors,  with  the  angel  of  death  brooding  over  it,  is  erro- 
neous. Storms  frequently  prevail  here,  the  waves  dashing 
high  up  on  its  shores :  and  we  have  seen  birds  flying  over  it 
and  ducks  swimming  far  out  on  its  surface.  There,  however, 
is  no  animal  or  vegetable  life  in  the  sea  itself.  Nor  is  there 
any  vegetable  life  along  its  shores;  but  up  the  valleys,  down 
which  the  sweet,  pure  waters  flow  from  mountain  springs, 
every  tropical  plant  grows  luxuriantly,  in  some  places  the 
shrubbery  crowding  down  to  the  very  edge  of  the  sea;  and  in 
these.groves  of  palm,  juniper,  and  oleander  you  will  find  birds 
of  every  hue  and  song.  Several  of  these  fresh-water  streams 
empty  into  the  sea  near  its  southern  extremity,  causing  the 
arid  "  desert  to  rejoice  and  blossom  as  the  rose."  K^othing  could 
surpass  the  productiveness  of  "  The  Safieh,"  as  this  district  is 
called ;  a  rich,  well-watered  valley,  "  even  as  the  garden  of  the 
Lord,"  about  six  miles  long  from  north  to  south,  and  two  wide. 
In  this  oasis  the  osher-tree,  or  apple  of  Sodom,  acacia,  camphor, 
indigo,  jujube,  and  other  rare  plants,  all  grow  spontaneously. 


296  BIBLE  LANDS. 

The  oslier-tree  generally  grows  to  the  height  of  ten  or  twelve 
feet,  has  a  large  oval  leaf,  and  when  cut  or  broken  discharges 
a  milky  fluid,  said  to  be  fatal  to  the  sight  if  applied  to  the 
eyes.  The  fruit,  when  ripe,  in  color  and  size  resembles  an 
ordinary  yellow  apple,  rather  beautiful  to  the  eye,  but  void  of 
substance.  It  is  not,  however,  filled  with  ashes,  as  commonly 
supposed,  but  with  air,  and  when  pressed  explodes  like  a  puff- 
ball,  emitting  smoke  and  a  sulphurous  smell,  but  containing 
nothing  save  a  few  small  seeds  and  thin  silky  fibers,  the  latter 
very  combustible,  wliich  the  Arabs,  not  liaving  matches,  use  as 
tinder,  witli  their  steel  and  flint,  in  firing  their  matchlocks  and 
h'ghting  tlieir  pipes. 

The  Bedouin  tribes  in  tliis  fertile  valley  are  of  the  lowest 
type  of  human  beings.  A  more  desperate,  savage,  and  degraded 
set  of  cut-throats  and  robbers  are  not  to  be  found  among 
Ishmael's  depraved  sons.  Generally  they  are  as  black  as  Af- 
ricans, entirely  nude,  and  licentious  as  the  Sodomites  of  old ; 
ever  on  the  lookout  for  victims,  and  ready  for  the  perpetration 
of  any  crime.  Our  adventures  among  these  miserable  wretches 
were  too  horrible  to  relate. 

Directly  west  of  this  Eden,  across  the  Gharandel,  is  a  great 
salt  plain,  entirely  destitute  of  vegetation,  the  supposed  site  of 
Sodom,  and  where  David  overthrew  the  Edomites.  The  whole 
plain  is  a  vast  slime-pit,  incrusted  with  salt,  beneath  which  is  a 
black,  greasy  marl,  very  slippery,  rendering  riding  over  it  both 
ditficult  and  dangerous. 

As  a  general  thing  the  mountains  bordering  this  sea  present 
a  picture  of  utter  desolation,  as  if  scathed  with  lightning  and 
riven  with  thunder-bolts.  Many  of  the  rocks  are  igneous,  emit- 
ting fire  when  struck,  and  an  odor  very  much  like  a  Lucifer 
match.     Slime-pits  and  sulphur  springs  are  found  along  the 


LOTS  WIFE. 


297 


shore,  and  between  the  head  of  the  sea  and  Jericho  hills  of 
almost  pure  sulphur ;  also  gypsum,  asphaltum,  and  black  bitu- 
minous blocks,  mixed  with  gravel  and  sulphur,  strew  the  beach, 
as  if  thrown  together  by  some  great  convulsion,  and  pure  bitu- 
men in  large  quantities  may  at  times  be  found  floating  on  the 
surface.  The  sea  at  night,  when  the  water  is  ruffled  by  the 
wind,  is  one  sheet  of  phosphorescent  foam,  and  the  waves  as 
■they  break  upon  the  shore  throw  a  sepulchral  light  upon  the 
Tocks  that  wall  in  tbis  dismal  gulf — reminding  one   of  the 


MOCNTAISS  EAST  OF  THE   DEAD  SEA. 


*'lake  of  fire,"  and  may  have  suggested  this  imagery  to  the 
apostle  John. 

Jebel  Usdum,  or  mountain  of  Sodom,  at  the  south-west  end,  is 
a  ridge  of  almost  pure  rock-salt,  extending  for  about  five  miles 
along  the  shore,  and  rising  perhaps  two  hundred  and  fifty  feet 
above  the  sea.  There  are  many  deep  clefts  in  the  range,  leaving 
detached  portions  of  salt  standing  like  pillars  in  every  fantastic 
shape,  some  of  them  at  least  one  hundred  feet  high,  any  one 
of  which  would  answer  very  well  for  "Lot's  wife:"  one  in  par- 


298  BIBLE   LANDS. 

ticular,  on  the  very  top  of  the  cliff,  from  a  certain  stand-point 
resembles  a  woman  in  hasty  flight,  with  her  disheveled  hair  and 
torn  garments  flying  in  the  wind,  and  her  head  slightly  turned, 
as  if  lookinor  back  over  her  left  shoulder  on  the  burnino'  cities 
from  which  she  is  fleeing  for  her  life. 

There  is  nothing  very  remarkable  in  the  statement  concern- 
ing the  fate  of  this  disobedient  woman.  From  the  narrative,  it 
appears  the  Lord  said  unto  Lot  and  his  family,  "Up,  get  you 
out  of  this  place.  Escape  for  thy  life;  look  not  behind  thee, 
neither  stay  thou  in  all  the  plain,  lest  thou  be  consumed.''  They 
started  on  their  flight.  "  But  his  wife  looked  back,  .  .  .  and 
she  became  a  pillar  of  salt."  *  Probably  in  the  very  act  of  dis- 
obedience she  was  struck  dead  with  a  thunderbolt,  or  suffocated 
with  the  sulphurous  fumes  that  pervaded  the  valley,  as  the 
elder  Pliny  in  the  destruction  of  Pompeii.  It  would  have  been 
miraculous  had  she  become  a  sand-stone  or  lime-stone  pillar. 
But  any  man's  wife  would  become  a  pillar  of  salt  in  this  region 
if  allowed  to  remain  here  long  enough.  No  corpse  would  ever 
decompose  on  the  shores  of  this  sea,  and  if  permitted  to  remain 
here  would  naturally  become  incrusted  with  salt,  and  in  time 
a  pillar  of  salt.  These  pillars  are  formed  by  accretion,  from 
the  spray,  mist,  and  saline  exhalations  of  the  sea,  and  are 
always  growing  larger.  So  it  is  literally  true,  that  if  you 
break  a  piece  off  it  will  form  on  anew. 

In  one  place  we  found  a  tunnel  or  cavern  leading  into  the  very 
heart  of  the  mountain,  into  which  we  rode  several  hundred  feet, 
until  it  became  too  dark  to  venture  farther.  It  looked  beauti- 
ful by  the  light  of  a  few  matches  and  candles,  the  vaulted 
roof  and  sides  sparkling  as  of  alabaster.  Many  grottoes  led  off 
to  the  right  and  left,  all  salt;  nothing  but  salt;  the  whole  mount- 

'  Genesis  xix,  14,  17,  26. 


SITE   OF  THE   CITIES   OF  THE   PLAIN.  29^ 

ain  salt !  During  heavy  rains  a  stream  of  briny  water  mns 
tlirougli  this  cavern  to  the  sea,  only  a  few  rods  distant.  This- 
same  rock  formation,  to  all  appearance  the  same  vein  of  salt^ 
crops  out  of  the  mountain  east  of  the  sea  between  the  Fortress 
of  Machaerus  and  the  Hot  Springs  of  Callirrhoe,  a  fact,  we 
believe,  never  before  noticed. 

The  precise  location  of  the  Cities  of  the  Plain  will  probably 
never  be  known.  If  not  submerged,  they  are  buried  many 
feet  beneath  the  soft  marl  constantly  washing  down  from  the 
surrounding  hills  and  filling  up  the  valley.  The  opinion  has 
long  obtained  that  Sodom  was  situated  on  the  great  salt  plain 
at  the  base  of  Jebel  Usdum,  south  of  the  sea.  Recently  some 
remarkable  ruins  have  been  discovered  at  Gumran,  two  miles 
north  of  Ain  Feshkah,  near  the  northern  end  of  the  sea,  and 
supposed,  from  a  similarity  of  name,  to  be  the  site  of  Gomor- 
rah. The  ruins  consist  of  a  rude  wall,  a  small  reservoir  built 
of  unhewn  stone,  and  a  mass  of  indistinguishable  rubbish  of 
old  houses  and  broken  pottery.  The  most  interesting  feature 
of  the  place  is  the  great  number  of  graves  in  the  vicinity — per- 
haps a  thousand.  And  what  is  more  singular,  the  bodies  all  lie 
with  their  heads  to  the  south  ;  so  they  cannot  be  Jewish,  Mo- 
hammedan, or  Cliristian.  The  tombs  are  about  five  feet  deep^ 
with  a  vault  for  the  body  at  the  bottom.  The  receptacle  for 
the  corpse  is  built  of  large  sun-dried  bricks  fifteen  inches  long, 
eleven  wide,  and  nine  inches  thick,  Rough  upright  stones  mark 
the  head  and  feet,  and  the  surface  of  the  graves  is  rudely  paved 
with  the  same  material.  No  inscription  or  device  has  yet  been 
found  to  indicate  the  race  or  age  to  which  these  tombs  belong, 
and  all  that  has  been  written  on  the  identity'  of  this  place  with. 
Gomorrah  is  hypothetical.  Of  the  other  cities  destroyed,  Ad- 
mah  and  Zeboim,  all  traces  have  long  since  disappeared. 


"SOO  BIBLE    LANDS. 

The  identity  of  Zoar  is  not  so  difficult,  as  down  to  the  four- 
teenth century  of  our  era  it  was  a  place  of  considerable  impor- 
tance. All  the  fathere  and  historians  of  the  Church  locate  it 
south-east  of  the  Dead  Sea,  on  the  road  leading  from  "  The  Sa- 
iieh  "  to  Kerak ;  and  we  find  here,  on  a  spur  of  the  mountain, 
six  hundred  and  fifty  feet  above  the  water,  extensive  ruins  that 
have  long  been  regarded  as  the  remains  of  the  "  little  city"  to 
which  Lot  escaped  wlien  driven  from  Sodom.  Zoar  was  made 
an  Episcopal  See  at  an  early  period,  and  its  Bishop  was  present 
and  took  an  active  part  in  the  Council  of  Chalcedon,  A.  D.  451. 
Being  in  the  province  of  Kerak  and  Ar,  it  must  have  been 
south  of  the  Arnon,  It  was  also  one  of  the  five  Cities  of  the 
Plain  ;  so  could  not  have  been  where  Dr.  Tristram  locates  it, 
•on  the  western  slope  of  Pisgah,  several  thousand  feet  above  the 
plain.  Lot  was  permitted  to  enter  this  city  because  the  mount- 
ain was  too  distant  for  him  to  reach.  Why,  then,  locate  it  on 
the  mountain,  and  so  far  from  the  scene  of  danger  ? 

Both  Isaiah  and  Jeremiah  refer  to  it  among  the  cities  of 
Moab.  It  is  never  mentioned  as  belonging  to  Israel,  but  always 
as  within  the  territory  of  Moab  ;  so  could  not  have  been  north 
of  the  river  Arnon,  but  somewhere  very  near  the  site  we  have 
named.  We  might  also  add,  this  situation  can  be  distinctly 
seen  from  the  mountain  east  of  Bethel,  where  Lot  and  his 
uncle  Abraham  parted.  Back  of  these  ruins  the  mountain 
rises  abruptly,  and  there  are  numerous  caves  among  the  rocks, 
one  of  which  is  pointed  out  as  the  cave  of  Lot ;  and  a  short 
distance  above  this,  along  the  sea-shore,  is  a  curious  pillar, 
not  of  salt  but  sand-stone,  resembling  very  much  a  female 
with  a  water-jar  in  her  right  hand  and  a  child  on  her  left 
shoulder,  called  by  the  natives  Bint  Sheik  Lut — the  "  Daughter 
of  Sheik  Lot."     We  confess,  however,  that  little  is  to  be  found 


DESTRUCTION   OF  SODOM   AND   GOMORRAH.  301 

among  these  shapeless  ruins  to  satisfy  the  inquisitive  mind  ; 
and  as  to  tlie  other  cities,  we  are  fully  convinced,  after  the 
most  thorough  investigation  of  the  whole  plain,  that  there  is 
nothing  above  ground  by  which  they  can  be  identified  or  their 
sites  determined. 

From  the  topography  of  the  whole  Ghor,  and  the  peculiar 
geological  formations,  such  as  banks  of  water-worn  sliingles, 
with  deposits  of  salt  and  sulphur,  there  must  have  been  a  sea 
or  fresh- water  lake  in  this  valley  long  prior  to  the  overthrow 
of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah,  and  there  is  no  reason  for  believing 
that  these  cities  were  submerged,  or  that  their  destruction  was 
brought  about  by  any  great  geological  disturbance. 

Among  the  mountains  that  border  the  sea  on  the  east  there 
are  several  craters  and  other  evidences  of  extinct  volcanoes. 
The  road  leading  north  from  Macheerus  down  to  tlie  Zurka 
Main  runs  over  great  fields  of  lava,  scoria,  and  cinders,  very 
much  like  the  descent  of  Vesuvius.  The  Cities  of  the  Plain 
were,  more  than  likely,  constructed  of  perishable  materials, 
-perhaps  sun-dried  bricks  mixed  with  cut  straw,  like  Damascus 
and  other  places  in  the  East,  as  the  remains  of  such  brick-kilns 
still  exist  on  the  plain  near  ancient  Jericho.  In  the  erection  of 
their  buildings  bitumen,  which  abounds  in  this  region,  was 
probably  used  instead  of  moi'tar,  and  the  houses  were  covered, 
as  in  Babylon,  with  a  matting  made  of  rushes  coated  with 
bituminous  slime,  and  supported  by  wooden  beams. 

From  the  Mosaic  account  it  appears  the  cities  were  destroyed, 
not  by  water  but  fire,  very  much  as  Pompeii  and  Herculaneum, 
probably  by  a  shower  of  hot  sulphurous  ashes  from  some  neigh- 
boring volcano,  leaving  no  trace  of  their  sites.  This  would  lit- 
erally be  a  rain  of  "  brimstone  and  tire,"  entirely  consuming  the 
<;oml)ustible  material  of  which  they  were  composed.     And  the 


302  BIBLE   LANDS. 

niter  thrown  out  by  the  eruption  would  transform  the  rich  vale 
of  Siddim  into  the  present  alkali  desert,  and  the  fresh-water 
lake  into  this  briny  sea.  It  also  appears,  as  before  stated,  that 
the  whole  lower  valley  of  the  Jordan  is  nothing  but  a  bed  of 
lava,  indicating  some  such  volcanic  action. 

The  most  remarkable  feature  of  this  most  remarkable  sea  is 
that  it  appears  to  be  subsiding  or  growing  less  every  year.  The 
water  lines  on  the  beach,  of  which  there  are  three  distinct  lev- 
els, clearly  indicate  this  ;  and,  what  is  more  strange,  the  bottom- 
seems  to  be  receding,  or  falling  out ;  that  is,  tlie  surface  is  sink- 
ing lower  and  the  sea  becoming  deeper.  When  Lieut.  Lyncli 
made  his  survey  in  1848  there  were  but  three  fathoms  at  the 
ford  opposite  the  Lisan,  and  many  old  Arabs  say  they  could 
easily  ride  across  on  their  camels  when  tliey  were  bo\'s.  !N^ow 
there  is  not  less  than  thirty  or  forty  feet  of  water  at  the  lowest 
point  where  once  it  was  fordable,  and  yet  the  shore  line  is 
lower  tlian  it  was  then.  At  another  place  a  portion  that  Avas 
frequently  dry  ten  years  ago  is  now  completely  submerged. 
This  is  true  of  all  south  of  the  peninsula ;  instead  of  filling  up- 
with  the  debris  washed  down  from  the  neighboring  hills  by  a 
hundred  mountain  torrents,  it  is  actually  growing  deeper.  We 
have  no  explanation  of  this  phenomenon,  unless  on  the  suppo- 
sition that,  the  prevailing  winds  being  from  the  south  and  west,. 
a  current  is  created  which  carries  the  sediment  from  the  shal- 
low portion  at  the  lower  end  into  the  almost  fathomless  depths 
farther  north.  This,  however,  would  not  explain  the  settling 
of  the  surface,  which  perhaps  could  be  accounted  for  by 
increased  evaporation. 

The  Bedouins  call  this  lake  Bahr  Lut — the  "  Sea  of  Lot " — 
and  all  traditions  among  these  tribes  touching  this  locality, 
together  with  the  sea  and  all  its  surroundings,  fully  corroborate- 


CORROBORATTOX   OF   SCRIPTURE.  303 

the  inspired  record.  Tlie  Scriptures  are  so  legiblj  written 
along  the  desolate  shores  of  this  desolate  sea  that  a  person 
visitingr  this  region,  who  had  never  heard  of  the  destruction  of 
Sodom  and  Gomorrah,  would  infer  from  the  sterility  and  death- 
like solitude  which  prevail  that  nothing  but  some  great  judg- 
ment from  the  Almighty  could  ever  have  produced  such  utter 
desolation.  We  find  here  "  a  waste  land  that  smoketh,  and  a 
fruitful  land  turned  into  saltness  for  the  wickedness  of  them 
that  dwelt  therein  ;"^  so  that  "no  man  shall  abide  there,  nei- 
ther shall  a  son  of  man  dwell  in  it ;  and  the  stranger  that  shall 
come  from  a  far  land  shall  say,  ,  .  .  Wherefore  hath  the  Lord 
done  thus  unto  this  land  ?  What  meaneth  the  heat  of  this 
great  anger  ?  .  .  ,  The  whole  land  is  brimstone,  and  salt,  and 
burning."  2  Lieutenant  Lynch,  in  his  report  upon  this  region, 
says :  "  We  entered  upon  this  sea  with  conflicting  opinions. 
One  of  our  part}^  was  skeptical,  and  another  a  professed  unbe- 
liever. After  twenty-two  days'  close  investigation,  if  I  am 
not  mistaken,  we  are  unanimous  in  the  conviction  of  the  truth 
of  the  Scripture  account  of  the  destruction  of  the  Cities  of  the 
Plain.  And  this  conclusion  I  record  as  a  protest  against  the 
shallow  deduction  of  those  who  would  be  unbelievers." 

In  summer,  at  this  great  depth  below  the  ocean,  and  walled 
in  by  mountains  four  thousand  feet  high,  the  atmosphere  is 
very  hot  and  sultry.  The  average  temperature  on  the  shore  of 
this  sea  for  the  first  ten  days  in  June,  1877,  was  one  hundred 
and  four  degrees  in  the  shade ;  but  there  is  nothing  in  this  heat 
deleterious  to  health.  In  winter,  however,  the  climate  is  per- 
fectly delightful — no  frost,  miasma,  or  chilling  winds,  but  a 
salubrious,  invigorating,  almost  intoxicating  atinosphere.  Here 
you  can  "run  and  not  weary,"  climb  the  highest  mountains 

*  Psalm  cvii,  34  ;  Jeremiah  xlix.  18.  '  Deuteronomy  xxix,  22.  24. 


304  BIBLE   LANDS. 

without  any  sense  of  fatifijue,  and  breathe  freely  with  one  liinor^ 
or  half  a  lung.  The  effect  of  the  bracing  air  is  really  wonder- 
ful. You  feel  as  though  you  could  "  run  through  a  troop,  or 
leap  over  a  wall."  Bathing  here  is  delicious.  You  have  also 
the  choice  of  hot  or  cold  baths,  in  fresh,  salt,  or  sulphur  fount- 
ains along  the  shore. 

The  waters  of  the  sea  have  not  that  dull,  leaden  appearance 
described  by  some  travelers,  but  are  as  clear  as  Lake  George, 
sometimes  of  a  greenish  tint,  and  often  look  as  blue  as  the 
Mediterranean.  And  the  purple  tints  of  the  mountains  in  the 
ra^'s  of  the  setting  sun.  reflected  from  a  sky  of  unequaled 
beauty,  are  often  gorgeous.  As  Mr.  Palmer  remarks,  "  The 
coloring  of  the  Dead  Sea,  and  its  neighborhood,  when  the 
atmosphere  is  clear,  is  simply  magniricent." 

Instead  of  the  exhalations  from  the  sea  being  injurious,  as. 
has  been  supposed,  they  seem  to  sharpen  the  appetite,  quicken 
the  intellect,  and  impart  new  life  to  the  whole  physical  system. 
As  it  seldom  rains  in  the  Ghor,  the  days  are  generally  bright 
and  cheerful,  the  nights  dry  and  balmy,  lulling  the  weary  into- 
refreshing  slumbers,  from  which  they  awake  "  rejoicing  as  a 
strong  man  to  run  a  race." 

A  steamer  on  this  sea  for  excursions,  and  a  good  Iiotel  near 
its  shores,  would  make  this  a  most  charming  winter  resort  for 
invalids,  nature's  own  sanitarium  for  suffering  mortals. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

FORTRESS  OF  MASADA  AND   CLIFF   OF  ZIZ. 

Last  Stronghold  of  the  Jews — Great  Strength  of  the  Fortress — Tragic  End  of  the- 
Garrison— The  Silence  of  Death— Eugedi—CliflF  of  Ziz— Rocks  of  ilie  Wild 
Goats — Burning  Bush — Stones  of  Witness. 

PERCHED,  like  an  eagle's  nest,  on  one  of  the  boldest  cliffs 
along  the  western  shores  of  the  Dead  Sea,  and  overlooking 
a  scene  of  natural  desolation  uneqnaled  on  the  globe,  is  the  re- 
nowned fortress  of  Masada,  the  last  stronghold  taken  by  the 
Romans  in  the  conquest  of  Palestine. 

This  celebrated  fortress  was  erected  by  Jonathan  Maccabaeus,. 
about  the  year  160  B.  C,  but  afterward  enlarged  and  greatly 
strengthened  by  Herod  the  Great,  who  surrounded  it  with  walls 
and  towers  of  great  strength,  and  supplied  it  with  stores  and 
arms  for  ten  thousand  men,  designing  it  as  a  place  of  refuge 
for  himself  in  case  of  rebellion  among  the  Jews,  or  Cleopatra, 
transferring  his  kingdom  to  Mark  Antony,  of  which  the  queen- 
of  Egypt  had  given  some  intimations. 

Josephus  describes  the  castle  and  fortress  as  "  built  on  a  rock 
prodigiously  craggy,  and  inaccessible  enough  to  strike  the  stout- 
est man  living  with  horror."  '  All  which  we  found  to  be  strict- 
ly true ;  the  rock  rising  almost  perpendicularly  one  thousand 
two  hundred  and  fifty  feet  above  the  sea,  and  separated  from 
the  mountain  range  by  deep  chasms  apparently  impassable.  A 
round  tower  with  double  walls,  and  other  extensive  ruins  on  a 
detachod  ledge  to  the  north — probably  the  "beautiful  and 

'  Jewish  Wars,  vii,  8. 

305 


S06  BIBLE   LANDS. 

richly  garnished  "  palace  of  Herod,  where  his  wife,  the  queenly 
and  matchless  Mariamne,  was  cruelly  imprisoned  before  her 
■death — are  entirely  inaccessible,  the  secret  passage  from  tlie 
palace  to  the  citadel  being  still  undiscovered. 

Almost  the  only  approach  to  this  aerial  fortress  Avas  by  a  ser- 
pentine path  called  ihe  "  Snake,"  so  narrow  and  difficult  that  to 
slip  or  make  a  misstep  was  certain  death  to  tlie  bold  intruder. 
Even  this  perilous  path  was  so  guarded  by  strong  towers  as  to 
render  the  place  next  to  impregnable.  One  hour  of  climbing, 
falling,  and  sweating  under  the  scorching  rays  of  the  noonday 
€un  brought  us  to  the  great  causeway  thrown  up  by  the  Ro- 
mans from  the  mountain  in  the  rear  to  the  isolated  castle  in 
front,  over  which  we  easily  passed,  and  soon  gained  the  es- 
planade of  the  fortress,  a  platform  about  one  mile  in  circum- 
ference. 

The  view  from  this  lofty  position  was  magnificently  wild 
and  drear.  The  whole  of  the  Dead  Sea  and  all  trans-Jordanic 
Palestine,  with  the  Jordan  Yalley  to  the  north,  and  the  great 
Salt  Plain  to  the  south,  were  spread  out  before  us.  The  breast- 
works and  other  fortifications  constructed  by  the  Romans  when 
they  laid  siege  to  this  stronghold,  nearly  two  thousand  years 
ago,  may  still  be  distinctly  traced  on  the  plain  below  and  up 
the  mountain  side,  in  some  instances  looking  as  if  vacated  but 
yesterday. 

Of  Masada  little  remains,  Tiiere  was  only  one  gate-way  to 
the  fortress,  which  still  stands  almost  perfect,  the  enemy  hav- 
ing entered  through  a  breach  to  the  north  of  it ;  but  the  wall 
and  towers  on  the  summit  have  all  been  toppled  over.  The 
ruin  of  a  synagogue,  with  tessellated  floors,  near  tlie  center  of 
tlie  platform,  is  in  good  preservation,  and  undoubtedly  is  the 
oldest  one  in  existence — a  cut  of  which  we  insert  as  sketched 


GREAT  STRENGTH   OF  THE   FORTRESS.  307 

by  Dr.  Ridgaway  on  the  spot.  Much  broken  pottery  and  glass 
covered  the  ground.  Several  rock-hewn  cisterns  and  natural 
caves  are  within  the  inclosure,  and  the  remains  of  many  large 
buildings  may  still  be  seen.  The  mountain  near  the  top  is 
pierced  with  numerous  galleries,  one  above  another,  running 
along  the  face  with  loop-holes  for  the  archers.  We  counted 
four  tiers  of  embrasures  facing  the  north,  with  parapet  walls  in 
front  and  passage-ways  from  one  to  another  cut  in  the  solid 
rock,  and  flanked  by  strong  towers  at  the  angles.  The  position, 
naturally  strong,  was  rendered  doubly  so  by  art ;  gallery  above 
gallery,  turret  on  turret,  and  fortress  within  fortress ! 


SYN'AGOGCE    IX    IIASADA. 

After  the  fall  of  Jerusalem,  Herodium,  and  Machaerus,  Fla- 
vins Silva,  now  in  command  of  the  Roman  army,  led  all  his 
forces  against  Masada,  the  last  important  post  held  by  the  Jews. 
The  place  was  defended  by  the  Sicarii,  a  class  of  Jewish  des- 
peradoes, or  freebooters,  whose  only  bond  of  union  was  their 
hostility  to  the  Romans.  They  were  under  the  command  of 
Eleazar,  a  man  of  great  bravery  and  influence  among  his  fol- 
lowers, and  were  prepared  to  make  a  most  desperate  resist- 
ance. 

Silva  first  seized  a  high  projecting  rock  called  "  the  lance," 

20 


308  BIBLE   LANDS. 

immediately  in  the  rear  of  the  fortress,  from  which  he  raised 
a  causeway  over  against  the  outer  ramparts  of  the  citadel  by 
filling  up  a  deep  ravine,  thus  enabling  his  engines  of  war  to 
j)lay  upon  the  walls.  He  also  constructed  a  tower  sixty  cubits 
high,  plated  with  iron,  from  which  scorpions  and  firebrands 
were  hurled  against  the  doomed  garrison. 

Those  within  long  and  stubbornly  resisted  any  attempt  on 
the  part  of  the  enemy  to  scale  their  works,  but  when  they  saw 
their  massive  walls  crumble  beneath  the  ponderous  strokes  of 
immense  battering-rams,  and  their  wooden  defenses  swept  away 
by  the  devouring  flames  maddened  by  a  furious  wind,  they  gave 
up  all  as  lost,  and  prepared  like  men  to  meet  their  fate. 

The  Romans,  having  carried  the  outer  walls  after  a  long,  des- 
perate struggle,  were  preparing  to  storm  tlie  citadel  as  night 
dropped  her  curtain  upon  the  bloody  scene,  and  they  retired  to 
their  quarters,  expecting  on  the  morrow  to  I'eturn,  complete 
their  work,  and  gather  their  spoils,  little  dreaming  of  the 
bloody  tragedy  to  be  enacted  within  the  fortress  during  that 
night  of  horrors. 

Eleazar,  despairing  of  any  help  from  without,  determined 
never  to  surrender  to  his  sworn  enemies ;  and,  conscious  of  his 
own  inability  to  hold  out  longer,  called  a  council  of  war;  set 
before  his  comrades  the  hopelessness  of  a  further  resistance; 
told  them  of  the  disgrace  and  sufferings  that  awaited  them  if 
they  capitulated ;  related  the  wrongs  the  Romans  had  inflicted 
upon  their  nation  ;  then  appealed  to  their  religious  convictions^ 
showing  how  noble  it  would  be  to  die  as  martyrs  for  their  God, 
and  proposed  that  all  their  wealth  be  gathered  into  the  castle 
and  destroyed  by  fire;  that  each  husband  murder  his  own  wife 
and  children  ;  that  ten  men  be  selected  by  lot  to  slaughter  the 
rest,  and  finally  one  from  the  ten  to  complete  the  work  of  death 


TKAGIC   END  OF  THE   GARRISON.  309 

by  the  suicide  of  himself,  after  all  his  brethren  were  dead. 
The  Sicarii,  ever  ready  to  obey  their  leader,  at  once  accepted 
the  proposal.  Their  vast  treasures  were  soon  given  to  the 
flames.  -Infatuated  husbands  and  fathers  first  affectionately 
embraced,  then  murdered  their  own  wives  and  offspring.  The 
men  chosen  to  slay  their  fellow-soldiers  did  faithfully  their 
work.  Throughout  the  fortress  during  that  night  of  blood 
the  cry  of  death  was  every-where  heard,  and  when  the  morning 
dawned  nine  hundred  and  sixt}'  victims  lay  dead  upon  the 
ground.  Two  women  and  five  children  who  concealed  them- 
selves in  a  cave  were  all  that  survived  to  tell  the  tale  of  woe. 

In  the  morning  the  Romans  entered,  but  found  death  and 
destruction  had  gone  before,  leaving  them  an  empty  victory 
after  their  long  siege.  Thus  the  prophecy  was  fulfilled,  "  Be- 
hold your  house  is  left  unto  you  desolate." 

Two  hours  north  of  Masada  is  Engedi,  the  site  of  ancient 
Hazezon-tamar,  a  city  of  the  Amorites  older  than  Sodom  or 
Gomorrah.  It  was  not  far  from  here,  in  the  "Yale  of  Siddim," 
perhaps  near  the  slime-pits  a  few  miles  south  of  this,  that  the 
kings  of  Chaldsea  defeated  the  five  kings  of  the  cities  of  the 
plain,  carrying  off  Lot  among  their  prisoners,  who  was  after- 
ward rescued  by  his  uncle,  Abraham. 

About  four  hundred  feet  above  the  sea  the  celebrated 
"Fountain  of  the  Kid,"  that  gives  its  name  to  the  place, 
gushes  from  the  mountain  side,  distributing  its  warm,  sweet 
waters  through  a  thousand  channels  over  the  fields  below, 
changing  the  arid  desert  into  a  blooming  garden,  fragrant  with 
tropical  flowers  and  fruits. 

"  The  Wilderness  of  Engedi,"  where  David  found  a  hiding- 
place  from  Saul,  is  a  desolate  tract  of  country  lying  directly 
west  of  this ;  and    it  was  here,  in  one  of  the  numerous  caves 


310 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


among  "  the  rocks  of  the  wild  goats,"  probably  AduUam,  that 
the  son  of  Jesse  cut  off  the  skirt  of  the  king's  robe. 

This  is  still  the  highway  and  usual  route  between  Moab  and 
Western  Palestine.  The  road  winds  round  the  southern  end  of 
the  sea,  up  its  western  shore,  thence  by  the  "  Cliff  of  Ziz  "  to 
Hebron  or  Jerusalem.     Nothing  could  be  more  frightful  than 


DEAD    SEA    FROM    ESGEDI. 


crossing  this  mountain  pass ;  several  times  we  had  to  unload 
our  poor  mules,  and  with  ropes  help  them  up  the  acclivity. 
At  some  points  as  we  looked  ahead  it  seemed  utterly  impossi- 
ble for  man  or  beast  to  scale  such  rocks ;  but  after  three  hours 
of  hard  climbing  we  accomplished  without  serious  accident  the 
renowned  passage  of  the  "  Cliff  of  Ziz." 


WILD  GOAIS,  BURNING  BUSH,  ETC.  311 

While  encamped  at  Engedi  some  Arabs  brought  in  a  "  wild 
goat  -'  they  had  just  killed  among  the  rocks,  showing  that  this 
animal  is  still  found  in  the  neighborhood.  We  also  had  here 
a  tine  exhibition  of  the  "  Burning  Bush."  There  is  a  tree 
peculiar  to  this  region,  and  which,  when  cut  down  or  dying 
naturally,  sends  forth  numerous  branches  or  parasites  from 
near  the  ground,  forming  a  thick  cluster  of  bushes  large  as  a 
shock  of  corn.  At  night  the  natives,  to  light  up  tlieir  camp, 
set  fire  to  the  dry  stump  in  the  center,  and  the  flames  slowlj' 
spread  to  the  green  twigs  until  the  w-hole  is  ablaze  and  gradu- 
ally consumed.  A  single  brush  heap  will  Inirn  iur  several 
hours,  and  in  the  darkness  looks  beautiful.  It  was  thus  the 
Almighty  manifested  himself  to  his  servant  Moses  on  Horeb, 
only  in  that  instance  the  bush  was  not  consumed,  symbolizing 
Go(l\s  care  for  his  people  amid  the  fiery  trials  of  earth. 

We  observed  also  a  beautiful  custom  among  the  Arabs  of 
commemorating  every  important  event,  and  marking  every 
prominent  point,  by  setting  up  memorial  stones,  as  Samuel 
raised  his  Ebenezer  at  Mizpeh ;  and  every  good  Christian  or 
Mussulman,  in  passing  these  memorials,  is  expected  to  add 
thereto  his  "  stone  of  witness."  These  Ebenezers  you  will  find 
on  almost  every  high  place  in  Palestine,  and  scared}^  a  pilgrim 
visits  the  Holy  Land  without  commemorating  the  event  by 
setting  up  a  stone  in  acknowledgment  of  God's  goodness  and 
protection. 

On  a  spur  of  the  mountain,  about  midway  between  Engedi 
and  Jebel  Usdum,  commanding  a  fine  view  of  Mount  Hor  and 
the  tomb  of  Aaron  far  away  to  the  south,  there  is  an  immense 
pile  of  witness  stones,  the  accumulation  of  ages,  and  every  year 
growing  larger,  as  every  Bedouin  and  traveler  passing  that  way 
contributes  his  stone  to  the  heap.     Having  a  great  reverence 


312 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


for  the  memory  of  Aaron,  we,  of  course,  added  our  testimony 
to  the  countless  multitude  of  witnesses,  then  resumed  our 
journey,  bidding  adieu  to  the  Valley  of  the  Dead  Sea.  Even 
passing  travelers  thus  adopt  the  peculiar  customs  of  Palestine ; 
and  so  fully  do  all  these  regions  claim  our  veneration — by  his- 
torical ruins  and  by  traditional  sites ;  by  inspired  records  and 
by  Mohammedan  legends ;  and  especially  by  an  indescribable 
antique  and  oriental  quality  pervading  every  sight  and  sound 
and  feeling — that,  in  spite  of  ourselves,  we  are  transported  to 
other  days,  and  in  fancy  live  again  the  lives  of  patriarchs  and 
judges,  of  prophets  and  monarchs,  of  Christian  disciples  and 
knightly  crusadere. 


Piece  of  Silver. 


licvi-rsc  side. 


Farthing— Two  Mites  Widow's  Mite. 

COINS  USED  IN  TIME   OP  CHRIST. 


PAET  III. 
TRANS-JOEDANIC  PALESTINE. 

"  And  Moses  gave  unto  the  children  of  Gad,  and  to  the  children  of  Reuben,  and 
unto  lialf  the  tribe  of  Manasseh  the  son  of  Joseph,  the  kingdom  of  Sihon  king  of 
the  Amorites,  and  the  kingdom  of  Og  king  of  Bashan,  the  land,  with  tlie  cities 
thereof,  from  the  river  Arnon  imto  Mount  Hermon,  and  all  the  plain  on  the  east." 
Num.  xxxii,  33 ;  Josh,  xii,  1. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE    LAND   OF   MOAB. 

Bejond  Jordan — Rich,  unexplored  Region — First  settled  by  the  Descendants  of 
Lot — Conquered  by  Moses — Given  to  Reuben,  Gad,  and  Mauasseh — Xow  over- 
run by  the  wild  Sons  of  Islimael — Castie  of  Kerak — Fortress  of  MacJiaerus. 

DIRECTLY  east  of  Jerusalem,  beyond  the  Jordan,  and  over- 
looking the  whole  of  western  Palestine,  is  the  almost  un- 
known and  unexplored  region  generally  known  as  Pera?a — the 
land  beyond ;  a  vast  tract  of  high  rolling  table-land  lying  at 
least  four  thousand  feet  above  the  valley  of  the  Dead  Sea,  and 
extending  eastward  to  the  great  Desert  which  stretches  away  ta 
the  Euphrates. 

This  portion  of  Syria,  from  south  of  the  Dead  Sea  to  Mount 
Hermon,  usually  referred  to  in  Jewish  history  as  the  land  of 
Moab,  Gilead,  and  Bashan,  was  first  permanently  settled  by  the 
Moabites  and  Ammonites,  the  descendants  of  Lot's  two  sons, 
Moab  and  Ben-ammi.'  It  was  among  the  first  countries  con- 
quered by  the  Israelites,  and,  on  account  of  its  rich  pasturage, 
given  to  Reuben,  Gad,  and  the  half  tribe  of  Mauasseh  as  their 
inheritance,  because  "  they  had  much  cattle." ""  In  the  eighth 
century  B.  C.  this  country  was  invaded  by  the  Assyrians,  and 
these  tribes  were  carried  away  captives  into  Assyria.'  And 
from  that  period  down  to  our  era  the  land  was  successively  oc- 
cupied by  the  Assyrians,  Greeks,  and  Romans,  the  remains  of 
whose  wealth  and  power  may  still  be  seen  in  the  magnificent 
ruins  found  scattered  all  over  this  part  of  Palestine.     Xo  dis- 

'  Genesis  xix,  37.  '  Deuteronomy  iii,  19.  '1  Chronicles  v,  26. 

315 


S16  BIBLE   LANDS. 

trict  of  equal  extent  on  tlie  face  of  the  earth  can  furnish  such 
remarkable  remains  of  ancient  races. 

After  the  fall  of  the  Roman  empire,  the  wild  sons  of  Ish- 
mael  from  the  Arabian  Desert  overran  the  country,  and  to  the 
present  have  retained  their  possession.  So  that  for  centuries 
this  whole  territory,  including  Edom,  so  intimately  connected 
with  Jewish  history,  has  been  inaccessible  to  travelei*s. 

The  Bedouins  who  occupy  this  land  are  a  warlike,  lawless, 
independent  race,  very  much  like  our  Xorth  American  Indians. 
They  have  no  permanent  settlements — have  never  silbmitted  to 
Turkish  rule,  pay  tribute  to  no  king — lead  a  nomadic  life, 
dwelling  in  tents,  and  roaming  from  place  to  place  as  necessity 
may  require;  the  most  independent  people  in  the  world.  The 
men  pride  themselves  in  being  warriors,  and  are  generally  seen 
mounted  on  splendid  Arab  mares.  You  never  see  a  Bedouin 
ehieftain  riding  a  horse.  The  women  do  all  the  drudgery,  and 
are  treated  as  mere  slaves.  The  principal  occupation  of  these 
tribes  is  plunder;  their  religion,  Mohammedan,  with  the  sim- 
ple creed^  Love  Allah,  kill  your  neighbor,  and  pray  with  the 
face  toward  Mecca  five  times  a  day.  Owing  to  their  preda- 
tory character,  their  greed  for  backsheesh,  and  great  hatred  for 
Christians,  this  interesting  field,  which,  without  doubt,  contains 
the  oldest  monuments  of  man,  remains  almost  unexplored. 

It  is  only  within  a  few  years  that  foreigners,  under  any  cir- 
cumstances, have  been  allowed  to  enter  this  "  no  man's  land," 
as  it  is  called.  In  company  with  Dr.  James  Strong  and  his 
party^  under  the  American  flag,  with  a  firman  from  the  Sultan, 
and  letters  from  the  Pasha  of  the  Belka,  by  paying  liberal 
tribute  we  made  our  first  tour  of  this  disputed  territory  in  the 
spring  of  1874. 

Ko  portion  of  the  United  States  is  richer  than  this  high 


THE    LAXD   OF   BEULAH.  (317 

plateau,  containing  several  thousand  square  miles  of  well  watered, 
fertile  land,  covered  with  flocks  and  herds,  and  black  with 
Bedouin  tents.  Tiie  soil  is  a  rich  limestone  loam,  capable  of 
supporting  an  immense  population,  and  of  growing  almost  any 
thing;  reminding  one  very  much  of  the  rich  rolling  prairies  of 
the  AVestei-n  States. 

The  central  portion  of  this  region  is  known  among  the  na- 
tives as  the  Belka,  and  from  its  natural  productiveness,  its  salu- 
brious climate,  and  the  grand  outlook  from  the  lofty  mountains, 
taking  in  the  whole  of  the  Land  of  Promise  from  "  Dan  to 
Eeer-sheba,"  and  "from  the  Jordan  to  the  uttermost  sea,"  with 
Jerusalem,  "  the  city  of  God,"  as  the  central  figure,  probably 
suggested  to  Isaiah  his  imagery  of  the  Land  of  Beulah,  which 
Bunyan  has  so  beautifully  woven  into  allegory ;  illustrating  the 
re})Ose  experienced  by  the  Christian  warrior  after  having  over- 
<?ome  the  world,  and  the  joy  which  enraptures  his  soul,  when, 
with  the  heavenly  Canaan  and  the  Celestial  City  in  view,  he 
descends  into  the  shadowy  valley  of  death,  crosses  in  safety 
the  Jordan,  and  passes  triumphantly  home. 

The  Land  of  Moab  included  the  southern  part  of  this  terri- 
tory from  Edom  to  the  Mountains  of  Gilead,  a  vast,  almost  un- 
broken plateau  of  the  richest  soil,  capable  of  sustaining  a  dense 
population.  When  first  conquered  by  the  Israelites,  Moses 
took  among  other  spoils  six  hundred  and  seventy-flve  thousand 
sheep,  and  seventy-two  thousand  beeves ;  and  after  it  became 
tributary  to  Israel  we  find  the  king  of  Moab  paying  as  a  rev- 
enue to  the  king  of  Israel  two  hundred  thousand  lambs  and 
rams.'  These  figures  do  not  astonish  us  after  seeing  the  natural 
productiveness  of  the  country,  and  the  numerous  ruins  that 
almost  literally  cover  its  surface. 

'  2  Kings  iii,  4. 


318 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


Some  of  these  ruins,  as  of  Rabbah  Ammon,  are  immense  ;^ 
hundreds  of  beautiful  granite  and  marble  columns  strew  the 
ground,  some  of  them  sixty  feet  long  and  fifteen  or  twenty 
feet  in  circumference.  One  very  unique  building  near  the 
river  must  have  been  designed  for  a  tomb ;  or,  perhaps,  was 
the  repository  of  the  "  iron  bedstead  "  '  of  Og,  the  giant  king  of 
Bashan.    The  gate-way  on  the  north,  before  which  Uriah  proba- 


RABBAII  AMMON. 


bly  fell,  is  a  wonderful  piece  of  workmanship,  and  of  itself 
would  repay  a  trip  from  America  to  see.  This  city  must  have 
been  destroyed  by  an  earthquake,  as  the  columns  generally  lie 
in  one  direction,  as  if  prostrated  at  the  same  moment  by  some 
Budden  shock  or  upheaval  of  the  earth.  We  saw  many  camels 
feeding  among  the  ruins,  literally  fulfilling  the  prediction  of 

'  Deuteronomy  iii,  11.  ^ 


KABBAH    AMMON.  319 

Ezekiel,  "  I  will  make  Rabbah  a  stable  for  camels."  '  Of  Hesh- 
bon,  the  royal  city,  of  Sihon,  king  of  the  Amorites,  but  little  re- 
mains. Her  famous  fish-pools  are  in  ruins  ;  her  walls  lie  in 
the  dust ;  and  in  looking  over  her  waste  jjlaees  one  is  ready  to 
-adopt  the  plaintive  language  of  Isaiah,  "  I  will  water  thee  with 
my  tears,  O  Heshbon."  ^  Near  Kabbath-Moab  we  found  the 
remains  of  a  large  temple,  facing  the  east,  with  portico  in  front, 
■and  many  broken  pillars,  and  richly  carved  capitals,  and  frag- 
ments of  cornice  lying  around.  Among  the  rubbish  were  sev- 
eral sculptured  figures  of  lions  and  other  animals,  and  on  the 
end  of  a  stone  two  feet  square  and  four  feet  long  was  carved 
the  head  of  a  woman  in  alto  relievo.  The  hair  was  parted  in 
the  center,  and  hung  in  ringlets  over  the  sides  of  the  face,  rest- 
ing gracefully  on  the  shoulders.  There  seemed  to  be  a  crescent 
supporting  the  figure,  with  rays  of  light  radiating  from  the 
head.  The  features  were  youthful  and  intellectual ;  and  I 
have  no  doubt  the  image  belonged  to  tiie  temple  close  by,  and 
was  designed  to  represent  Ashtaroth,  tlie  queen  of  heaven  and 
consort  of  Baal,  the  favorite  goddess  of  the  old  Phoenicians, 
whose  first  settlements,  long  anterior  to  the  founding  of  Tyre 
or  Sidon,  were  east  of  the  Dead  Sea  and  in  this  immediate 
neighborhood. 

Rabbath-Moab,  the  Ai'eopolis  of  the  Greeks,  became  the 
capital  of  Moab  after  the  Amorites  took  possession  of  that  por- 
tion of  the  territory  lying  north  of  the  river  Arnon ;  and  after 
the  fall  of  Petra  it  was  made  the  metropolis  of  Palestina  Tertia. 
The  place  is  now,  and  has  been  for  centuries,  entirely  deserted. 
The  old  Roman  road  from  Petra,  running  north,  passes  through 
it,  along  which  may  still  be  seen  some  of  the  mile-stones  giving 
the  distance,  in  Roman  numerals,  to  unknown  places.     Many  of 

'  Ezekiel  xxv,  5.  ^  Isaiah  xv,  9. 


320  BIBLE    LANDS. 

the  streets  are  clearly  defined.  The  gate-ways  are  plainly 
marked.  Some  beautiful  columns  are  still  standing,  and  half 
buried  in  rubbish  are  the  remains  of  tombs,  temples,  theaters, 
and  other  edifices,  showing  the  extent  and  grandeur  of  the  city 
that  was  "  laid  waste  and  brought  to  silence  in  a  night."  ^ 

The  road  to  '*  the  Arnon,"  along  which  the  children  of  Israel 
must  have  traveled  when  they  came  up  out  of  Egypt,  may  still 
be  traced  from  here  to  the  "  city  in  the  midst  of  the  river,"  ' 
and  in  places  the  ruts  may  still  be  seen  worn  by  chariot  wheels 
in  its  solid  bed.  Wady  Mojib,  through  which  the  Arnon  flows, 
formed  the  southern  boundary  of  trans-Jordanic  Palestine  and 
the  northern  boundary  of  Moab  after  the  conquest  of  the  coun- 
try by  the  Israelites — a  natural  barrier,  standing  like  a  wall  of 
iron  two  thousand  feet  high  between  the  two  nations.  The 
passage  of  this  chasm  was  truly  frightful.  It  was  with  great 
difficulty  we  succeeded  in  getting  down  to  the  river,  as  in  places 
the  bluffs  were  almost  perpendicular;  and  the  only  way  we 
could  make  the  ascent  was  by  a  zigzag  path  through  clefts  in 
the  rocks.  Sometimes  it  appeared  like  going  up  a  winding 
staircase,  and  in  a  few  instances  we  had  to  dismount,  and  were 
drawn  up  by  holding  on  to  our  horses'  tails. 

A  few  miles  south  of  ancient  Ar  is  the  renowned  fortress 
and  city  of  Kerak,  the  Kir-hareseth  of  the  Bible,^  one  of  the 
most  remarkable  ruins  in  the  world. 

As  the  name  signifies,  this  is  emphatically  a  city  on  a  hill, 
being  situated  on  a  towering  rock  at  least  one  thousand  feet 
above  the  surrounding  valleys,  and  four  thousand  three  hun- 
dred and  ninety  feet  above  the  Dead  Sea  at  its  base.  And 
yet  even  this  elevated  platform  is  commanded  by  the  neigh- 
boring heights,  which  inclose  it  on  all  sides  except  the  west. 

'  Isaiah  xv,  1.  *  Joshua  xiii,  9.  *  Isaiali  xvi,  7. 


CASTLE   OF   KERAK.  323 

On  these  heights  the  armies  of  Israel  were  encamped  when 
*•  the  slino^ers  went  about  it  and  smote  it."  '  Katurallv  a  strong 
•position,  it  was  rendered  by  art  almost  impregnable.  Formerly, 
the  only  entrances  were  through  two  dark,  crooked  tunnels  cut 
out  of  the  solid  rock,  and  commanded  by  fortifications  of  great 
strength.  Even  the  citadel  was  so  isolated  from  the  city  by  a 
■deep,  wide  fosse  that  an  enemy  in  possession  of  either  post 
•could  not  occupy  the  other.  These  fortifications  are  of  three 
■distinct  periods.  The  most  ancient  belongs  to  the  Jewish,  the 
next  to  the  Roman,  and  the  third  to  the  time  of  the  Crusaders. 
It  was  here  that  E,;)ynald  of  Chatillon,  when  Lord  of  Kerak, 
feeling  secure  in  the  possession  of  this  stronghold,  defied  the 
authority  of  Baldwin,  King  of  Jerusalem,  broke  the  treaty 
with  Saladin,  and  by  his  rashness  brought  on  the  battle  of 
Hattin,  that  resulted  in  the  fall  of  Jerusalem  and  expulsion  of 
the'  Crusaders  from  Palestine. 

The  platform  on  which  the  city  is  built  is  about  two  miles  in 
circumference,  and  has  been  surrounded  by  a  high,  strong  wall 
resting  on  the  natural  rock,  which  was  either  scarped  down  or 
smoothly  faced,  rendering  it  insurmountable  from  without. 

These  defenses  are,  in  ^many  places,  in  ruins,  it  being  the  pol- 
icy of  the  Turkish  Government  to  weaken  the  position  as  much 
as  possible.  A  year  or  two  since  a  Turkish  garrison  was  sent 
here,  but  the  natives  refused  to  tolerate  it,  and  drove  the  sol- 
diei*s  out  of  the  citadel  and  back  to  Damascus. 

The  two  principal  positions  of  strength  are  the  castle  and 
citadel.  The  former  was  built  by  Bybars,  King  of  Egypt,  about 
A.  D.  1363.  This  fortress  fronts  to  the  north-west.  The  lower 
sections  of  the  walls  are  twentj'-seven  feet  thick,  casemated, 
and  the  whole  flanked  by  two  lofty  square  towers  witli  loop- 

• '  2  Kings  iii,  25. 
21 


324  BIBLE    LANDS. 

holes  for  the  archers.  Tlie  other  stronghold  is  the  great  citadel 
on  the  southern  angle  of  the  wall ;  an  immense  fortress,  perhaps 
one  thousand  feet  long,  by  half  that  distance  wide,  and  from 
eight  to  ten  stories  high.  Portions  of  this  citadel  belong  to  a 
very  early  period,  but  it  was  greatly  strengthened  and  enlarged 
by  Raynald  and  Godfrey  of  Boulogne,  in  the  twelfth  century. 
Taken  altogether,  this  is  the  grandest  ruin  in  Moab,  and  the 
greatest  monument  the  Crusaders  have  left  of  their  energy  and 
power.  The  walls  are  of  incredible  thickness,  and  of  the  most 
massive  masonry — vaults,  arches,  galleries  rising  one  above 
another  to  a  bewildering  height,  and  pierced  by  innumerable 
loop-holes.  In  the  center  are  the  remains  of  a  large  Christian 
church,  with  vaulted  ceiling,  once  frescoed.  Some  of  the  paint- 
ings may  still  be  faintly  traced — one,  the  head  of  some  saint 
with  a  corona,  is  quite  distinct.  A  secret  gallery  cut  through  the 
solid  rock  connected  the  citadel  with  the  castle.  Somewhere  on 
this  high  altar,  perhaps  on  the  esplanade  where  our  tents  are 
pitched  and  the  American  flag  is  waving,  thirty  centuries  ago  one 
of  the  most  tragic  scenes  in  our  world's  history  was  witnessed. 
The  kings  of  Israel,  Judah,  and  Edom  made  war  against  Moab. 
They  laid  waste  the  whole  land,  and  drove  the  Moabites  with 
their  king  into  this  strong  position,  laying  siege  to  the  citadel. 
The  battle  became  too  sore  for  the  King  of  Moab,  and,  as  a  for- 
lorn hope,  with  seven  hundred  men  he  undertook  to  cut  his  way 
out  of  his  beleaguered  castle,  but  in  this  he  failed.  Then,  in 
his  desperation,  that  he  might  lire  his  own  army  witli  increased 
ardor,  and  show  to  the  enemy  his  determination  to  sacrifice 
every  thing  before  surrendering,  "  he  took  his  eldest  son,  who 
should  have  reigned  in  his  stead,  and  offered  him  for  a  burnt 
offering  upon  the  wall,"  '  probably  in  full  view  of  both  armies ;. 

'  2  Kings  iii,  27. 


FORTRESS  OF   MACH^RUS.  326 

rousing  among  his  soldiers  such  a  feeling  of  indignation  against 
Israel  as  to  cause  the  allies  to  raise  the  siege  at  onee,  "  and  re- 
turn to  their  own  land." 

The  Kerak  Arabs  are  among  the  most  treacherous  and  dan- 
gerous tribes  east  of  the  Jordan.  "We  were  the  lirst  Americans 
to  pass  through  their  territory,  and  on  several  occasions  appre- 
hended the  most  serious  results,  but  by  paying  liberal  back- 
sheesh, with  due  prudence  and  firmness,  managed  to  escape 
with  our  lives. 

But  the  place  of  greatest  interest  to  the  Christian  in  all  this 
land,  so  remarkable  for  its  wonders,  is  the  lonely  fortress  and 
castle  of  Machaerus,  mentioned  by  both  Pliny  and  Strabo  as 
among  the  strongest  fortifications  of  the  Jews,  and  where  John 
the  Baptist  was  imprisoned  and  beheaded.  About  midway  be- 
tween Wady  Zerka  on  the  north  and  the  River  Arnon  on  the 
south,  two  of  the  deepest,  wildest  gorges  that  cut  their  way 
down  to  the  De^d  Sea  from  the  east,  on  a  bold  spur  of  the 
mountain  that  projects  westward  from  the  main  laud,  and  ap- 
pears to  overhang  the  sea  four  thousand  feet  below,  are  the 
ruins  of  this  celebrated  fortress. 

This  spur  is,  perhaps,  two  miles  long,  sloping  gradually  to- 
ward the  west,  but  is  cut  through  about  midway  by  two  deep 
ravines,  leaving  in  the  center  a  high,  almost  perpendicular, 
conical  hill,  upon  which  stood  the  citadel  and  palace,  the  city 
covering  the  upper  and  lower  terraces  east  and  west  of  the 
Acropolis. 

The  place,  naturally  strong,  was  rendered  almost  invulnerable 
by  numerous  walls,  ditches,  and  towers,  the  remains  of  which 
lie  scattered  over  the  ridge.  Xo  sooner  had  we  pitched  our 
tents,  and  unfurled  the  stars  and  stripes  amid  the  ruins  of  the 
upper  city,  than  we,  in  company  witli  Dr.  Ridgaway,  hastened 


S2H  BIBLE    LANDS. 

off  to  the  citadel,  perhaps  half  a  mile  due'  west,  ambitious  to 
lie  the  lirst  Americans  to  enter  this  interesting  ruin.  Descend- 
ing bj  the  old  road  to  the  causeway  tlirown  across  the  valley 
on  the  south-east  by  the  Romans,  when  the  stronghold  was 
taken  by  Bassus,  we  began  the  fatiguing  ascent,  and  after  much 
climbing,  scrambling,  and  falling  the  writer  was  the  first  to 
rsach  the  summit  and  look  out  upon  the  grand  panorama  in 
front ;  for  from  this  eminence  the  whole  of  the  Dead  Sea,  with 
its  desolate  shores — Jerusalem  and  all  the  hill  country  of  Judea, 
Jericho,  and  the  Yalley  of  the  Jordan  stretching  far  away  to  tlie 
-north — can  be  distinctly  seen.  Tiie  fortress  was  circular,  about 
■  one  thousand  feet  in  circumference,  the  walls  of  which  can  still 
be  traced,  and,  as  described  by  Jewish  historians,  M'ere  of  great 
■strength,  and  one  hundred  and  sixty  cubits  high,  which  may 
be  correct,  as  the  upper  section  of  the  cone  aj)peared  to  be 
artificial,  similar  to  that  at  Herodium.  The  valleys  which 
formed  the  natural  defenses  of  this  fortress  ai;p  of  great  depth; 
so  deep,  says  one  historian,  "  that  the  eye  could  not  reach  their 
bottom,"  which  is  strictly  true,  for  when  standing  among  the 
ruins  on  the  summit  of  this  lofty  cone  we  found  it  impossible 
to  ^e  some  of  our  party  in  the  abyss  below,  so  precipitous  are 
the  sides  and  so  deep  the  valleys. 

Within  the  citadel  was  the  royal  palace,  which  to  us  is  the 
chief  point  of  interest,  as  the  place  of  John's  imprisonment 
and  martyrdom.-  The  palace,  according  to  Josephus,  was  of 
''  towering  height  and  vastly  beautiful,"  the  ascent  to  which, 
from  the  lower  city,  was  b}'  a  secret  staircase,  which  also  com- 
municated with  great  cisterns  cut  in  the  sides  of  the  mountain, 
one  of  which  is  ninety  feet  long,  twenty  wide,  and  thirt}'  deep, 
hewn  out  of  the  solid  rock,  with  steps  leading  down  to  it  on 
the  north. 


PRISON  OF  JOHN   THE  BAPTIST.  327 

Among  the  remains  of  the  castle  we  found  two  vaylted  dun- 
geons, thirty  f^et  long  and  twenty  wide,  near  the  wall  on  the 
south ;  in  one  of  which,  more  than  probably,  the  forerunner  of 
Christ  was  beheaded.  It  was  with  peculiar  emotions  we  hunted 
among  the  rubbish  of  ages  for  some  memento  of  the  place,  and 
when  we  found  the  mouth-piece- of  an  old  earthen  water-jar, 
we  could  not  but  think  that  perhaps  the  parched  lips  of  the 
martyr  might  once  have  touched  that  piece  of  potter's  clay. 
Very  sad,  indeed,  to  visit  the  scene  of  such  painful  events. 

Josephus  gives  a  full  description  of  ^[achserus  and  its  event- 
ful history,'  and  the  place  in  every  particular  answers  the  de- 
scription. It  was  built  by  Alexander,  son  of  Hyrcanus  I.,  but 
afterward  enlarged  and  strengthened  by  Herod  the  Great,  \v\u\ 
to  protect  his  Arabian  frontier,  made  it  the  most  formidable 
fortress  east  of  the  Jordan. 

To  this  castle  Herod  Antipas  brought  Herodias,  his  brother 
Philip'.-i  wife,  having  first  discarded  his  own  wife,  the  daughter 
of  Aretas,  king  of  Arabia,  with  whom  he  had  long  happily 
lived.  John  at  the  same  time  was  preaching  and  baptizing  in 
the  neighborhood.  Pie  was  unsparing  in  his  denunciations, 
and  fearlessly  told  Herod  "it  was  not  lawful  for  him  to  have 
his  brother's  wife.''  This  rebuke  provoked  the  wrath  of  her 
with  whom  the  king  was  living  in  adultery.  At  the  instiga- 
tion of  Herodias  John  was  at  once  arrested  and  cast  into  the 
prison  of  Machserus.  And  it  was  here  that  Herod,  during  the 
celebration  of  his  birthday,  when  surrounded  by  his  court,  to 
please  the  whims  of  this  abandoned  woman  and  to  flatter  the 
vanity  of  a  dancing  damsel,  against  his  own  b(?tter  convictions 
sent  to  the  prison  in  the  midnight  hour  and  had  this  man  of 
God  beheaded. 

'  Jewish  Wars,  vii,  6. 


328  BIBLE    LANDS. 

Herod  and  liis  infamous  mistress  have  long  since  gone  to 
their  reward,  their  palace  lies  in  ruins,  and  their  scepter  has 
departed  forever ;  but  the  voice  they  sought  to  hush  in  death 
may  still  be  heard  "  crying  in  the  wilderness,  Prepare  ye  the 
way  of  the  Lord ;"  and  John  the  Baptist  never  preached  more 
effectively  than  he  does  to-day  from  the  prostrate  walls  and 
silent  dungeons  of  Machaerus.  How  strange  that  the  scene  of 
one  of  the  most  tragic  events  in  Gospel  history  should  so  long 
remain  unvisited  by  the  Christian  traveler ;  and  more  especially 
when  we  consider  that  the  name  has  never  been  changed, 
M'khaur,  the  present  name,  being  the  exact  Arabic  of  the  Greek 
Machaerus ! 


I 


CHAPTER  II. 

HOT  SPRINGS   OF   CALIKRHOE — THE   MOABITE  STONE. 

Zurka  Main — Enclianlii\g  Valley — Xiimeroiis  Hot  Springs — Delicious  Bathing — 
Strange  Legend — Fishing  in  Wad}-  Waleh — Dibon,  Ancient  Capital  of  Moab 
— Discovery  of  the  Mesiia  Stone — Oldest  Alphabetic  Inscription — A  Lost 
Chapter  of  liie  Bible  Recovered. 

OXE  of  the  most  remarkable  and  romantic  valieys  in  this 
land  of  wonders  and  romance  is  the  Znrka  Main,  or  Ca- 
lirrhoe,  celebrated  for  its  hot  springs,  mentioned  by  Pliny  and 
Joseplms,'  and  to  which  Herod  the  Great  resorted  during  his 
last  illness — a  wild  gorge  directly  north  of,  and  about  three  thou- 
sand feet  below,  Mach^rus.  Riding  out  the  old  Roman  road 
along  the  ridge  north  of  M'khaur,  we  soon  began  the  descent 
of  the  mountain  to  a  lower  terrace,  where  we  found  traces  of  a 
prehistoric  race  in  numerous  dolmens,  tumuli,  and  curious 
stone  circles  composed  of  large  basalt  blocks,  the  inclosures 
being  from  two  to  three  hundred  feet  in  diameter.  Sweeping 
round  tlie  head  of  Wady  Z'gara,  from  which  a  grand  view  of 
the  sea  and  country  beyond  is  liad,  we  continued  our  des'cent 
by  a  perilous  path  over  fields  of  lava  and  scoria,  very  much  like 
Vesuvius.  Next  we  came  to  the  limestone  bed,  and  below 
this  to  a  strata  of  pure  rock-salt  of  unknown  thickness,  crop- 
ping out  of  the  mountain,  and  corresponding  exactly  with  the 
formation  at  Jebel  Usdum.  It  was  a  bold  piece  of  engineering 
to  construct  a  chariot  road  down  such  a  declivity,  but  the  old 
Romans  did  it,  and  did  it  well,  as  in  places  where  our  j^ath 

'  Antiquities,  xvii,  6. 

329 


330  BIBLE    LANDS. 

crossed  tlie  old  track  we  could  still  see  its  solid  bed  and  side 
walls.  After  two  hours  of  riding  and  walking,  stumbling  and 
falling,  we  reached  safely  the  bottom  of  this  deep  gorge,  which, 
for  natural  beauty,  is  without  an  equal.  The  valley,  generally^ 
is  not  more  than  tifty  or  one  hundred  yards  wide,  walled  in  with 
almost  perpendicular  cliifs  from  five  hundred  to  one  thousand 
feet  high,  as  if  rent  asunder  by  some  earthquake,  reminding 
one  very  much  of  the  canons  of  California.  The  view  through 
this  chasm  down  to  the  Dead  Sea  is  fearfully  grand  ;  for  wild- 
ness  nothing  can  surpass  it  in  Palestine.  On  these  towering 
cliffs  the  eagle,  undisturbed,  builds  her  nest,  and  the  ibex,  un- 
pursued  by  man,  leaps  from  crag  to  crag,  while  in  the  jungle 
at  their  base  the  wild  boar  and  leopard  still  find  a  safe  retreat. 

Being  one  thousand  feet  lower  than  the  level  of  the  ocean, 
with  a  mild  temperature  and  well  supplied  with  water,  vegeta- 
tion is  prolific  and  the  effect  enchanting.  Date-bearing  palm- 
trees,  with  the  juniper  and  tamarisk,  grow  in  every  nook  and 
corner  ;  thickets  of  oleanders,  in  full  bloom,  border  the  streams ; 
dense  cane-brakes  wave  their  beautiful  plumes  in  the  air  ;  -vvild 
tulips  and  geraniums,  of  most  delicate  tints,  perfume  the  whole 
valley  ;  mosses  and  maiden-hair  ferns  fringe  the  limpid  fount- 
ains, and  every  rock  appears  as  set  in  a  fi'ame-work  of  flowers. 
The 'whole  scene,  gladdened  by  the  voice  of  many  waters  and 
the  softer  notes  of  the  cuckoo  and  other  warblers  of  the  glen^ 
makes  this  truly  a  lovely  spot  for  sick  and  weary  mortals. 

There  are  ten  hot  springs  in  the  distance  of,  perhaps,  three 
miles.  They  are  all  on  the  north  side  of  the  gorge,  four  to  six 
miles  from  the  sea,  and  burst  forth  at  the  junction  of  the  lime- 
stone with  the  red  sandstone.  Their  temperature  i-aUges  from 
ninety  to  one  hundred  and  forty-five  degrees  Fahrenheit.  In 
testing  one  I  found  it  impossible  to  hold  my  hand  in  the 


ZCRKA    MAIS^-CALIRRHOE. 


DELICIOUS  BATHIXG.  333 

water  over  half  a  second.  It  was  rather  amusing  to  see  the 
horses  jump  when  thej  stepped  into  these  seething  fountains. 
The  water  is  strongly  impregnated  with  sulphur,  and  where  it 
issues  from  the  mountain  leaves  a  sulphurous  deposit,  in  some 
instances  acres  in  extent.  This  deposit  increases  from  year  to 
year,  so  that  some  of  the  springs,  immediate!}'  below  their 
source,  are  entirely  covered  to  a  depth  of  from  fifty  to  one 
hundred  feet,  just  ns  ice  forms  over  a  running  brook  in  winter. 
In  some  places  there  are  crevices  in  this  crust  from  which  the 
lieated  air  and  steam  escape,  affording  a  grand  vapor  bath. 
Where  the  water  forms  into  cascades  the  rocks,  shrubs,  and 
even  trees  are  incrusted  with  the  sulphur,  giving  them  the 
appearance  of  beautiful  coral  formations.  In  one  place  in 
particular,  at  the  foot  of  a  water-fall,  large  palm-trees  were 
petrified  or  turned  into  sulphur,  and  crumbled  like  chalk  to  the 
touch.  A  few  steps,  however,  from  the  springs  vegetation 
flourishes  as  in  tropical  climes. 

Bathing  here  is  as  great  a  novelty  as  luxury.  Almost  any 
temperature  of  water  can  be  enjoyed,  as  hot  and  cold  streams  fre- 
quently flow  side  by  side  in  the  same  channel  for  some  distance 
without  commingling.  On  the  one  side,  where  the  cold  stream 
flows,  all  18  life — fish  abound,  and  flowers  bloom  along  the 
shore.  On  the  other  side,  where  the  hot  water  runs,  all  is  death  ; 
not  a  thing  that  hath  life  can  be  found  in  the  stream  or  on  its 
banks.  In  bathing  you  can  first  plunge  into  a  pool  seemingly 
hot  enough  to  scald  you,  then  with  a  bound  leap  into  another 
cold  enough  to  chill  you  ;  or  you  can  lie  with  your  head  in  the 
cold  water  and  your  feet  in  the  warm.  And  quite  a  novel  and 
pleasing  sensation  is  experienced  by  lying  on  your  back  in  the 
middle  of  the  stream  with  half  3'our  body  in  cold  water  and 
the  other  half  in  hot ;  one  side  almost  parboiled,  the  other  de- 


334  BIBLE    LANDS. 

lightfully  cool.  What  a  place  for  a  sanitarium  !  I  know  of 
nothing  like  it. 

On  the  plateau  directly  north  of  these  sprnigs  is  the  tradi- 
tional lield  where  Elijah,  on  his  return  from  Horeb,  met  Elisha 
"  plowing  with  twelve  yoke  of  oxen."  '  There  is  nothing  sur- 
prising in  this  statement.  I  have  seen  as  many  as  twenty  yoke 
of  oxen  plowing  at  the  same  time  in  the  same  field. 

Our  party  were  the  first  Americans  to  visit  these  remarkable 
springs,  which  for  more  than  two  thousand  years  liave  been 
celebrated  for  their  healing  properties.  This  was  the  gi-eat 
resort  of  the. Romans  in  the  days  of  the  Empire,  but  we  could 
find  no  trace  of  Herod's  marble  baths  ;  every  thing  being  buried 
beneath  the  sulphurous  deposits  of  twenty  centuries.  The  few 
Bedouins  who  come  here  to  be  cured  of  their  infirmities  believe 
firndy  in  the  virtue  of  the  water,  and  have  a  tradition  that  these 
fountains  flow  from  the  lower  regions,  and  are  allowed  to 
escape  lest  the  unfortunate  doomed  should  bathe  in  their  heal- 
ing waters  and  be  restored  to  life  again. 

Leaving  these  springs,  and  continuing  up  the  valley  to  its 
head,  we  rode  over  a  rocky  ridge  into  Wad}'  Waleh,  a  'branch 
of  the  Arnon,  where  we  encamped  for  the  night  in  a  grove  of 
flowering  oleanders.  An  old  Roman  road  once  crossed  the 
valley  at  this  point  on  a  bridge  of  five  stone  arches,  now  in 
ruins  ;  the  paved  road-bed  may  still  be  seen,  and  on  some  of  the 
mile-stones  can  still  be  read  the  name  of  the  Emperor  Severus. 
We  saw  illustrated  here  how  "  the  waters  wear  the  stones." 
The  bed  of  the  stream  is  a  soft  limestone,  and  the  waters  have 
worn  it  into  a  thousand  difi^erent  channels,  cavities,  and  pools, 
of  every  fantastic  form  :  some  of  them  have  the  shape  of  Ijath- 
tubs,  in  one  of  which  we  took  a  refreshing  swim  ;  others  are 

'  1  Kings  xix,  19. 


aVVO. 


V 


+yif 


'^2^=2.^- 


THE    MOABITE    STOSE. 


DISCOVERY   OF  THE   MOABITE   STONE.  337 

larger,  and  full  of  fish,  of  wliich  we  caught  enough  for  break- 
fast. The  fish,  not  being  acquainted  with  modern  tactics,  were 
easily  taken  with  a  pin-hook.  The  natives  thought  the  fish 
very  foolish  for  biting,  and  said,  "  They  caught  themselves ; 
for  if  they  didn't  bite  they  wouldn't  be  caught." 

Striking  our  tents  at  an  early  hour  we  soon  gained  the  high, 
rich  plateau  immediately  nortli  of  the  Arnon,  dotted  with  flocks 
and  herds,  and  yellow  with  fields  of  wheat  and  barley,  where 
Sihon,  king  of  the  Amorites,  was  slain  when  he  gave  battle  to 
the  Israelites  after  refusing  them  the  privilege  of  passing 
through  his  territory.  A  ride  of  a  few  miles  over  this  fertile 
plain — the  grass  in  some  places  up  to  our  horses'  knees — brought 
us  to  the  ruins  of  Dibon,  the  ancient  capital  of  Moab,  where 
the  celebrated  Mesha  stone  was  found. 

Among  all  the  discoveries  of  modern  times  none  possess 
greater  interest  to  the  lingnist,  historian,  and  biblical  scholar 
than  "  The  Moabite  Stone."  Apart  from  the  light  it  sheds 
upon  an  obscure  portion  of  Jewish  history,  it  is  of  great  value 
to  the  archaeologist  as  the  oldest  specimen  of  alphabetic  writing 
extant — dating  back  at  least  to  890  B.  C.  The  Assyrian  inscrip- 
tions are  older  than  the  Moabite,  but  they  are  not  a  language 
of  letters ;  the  arrow-headed  character  being  used  to  denote 
whole  words.  The  hieroglyphics  of  Egypt  are  older,  but  they 
are  symbolic  writing,  not  alphabetic.  Among  the  Egyptians  a. 
lamp  signified  life  ;  a  jackal,  cunning  ;  a  waving  line,  running 
water ;  so  that  the  finding  of  this  stone  has  helped  greatly  to 
settle  the  long-disputed  question  as  to  the  origin  of  letters  and 
the  art  of  writing.  It  also  shows  clearly  that  the  Semitic  na- 
tions east  of  the  Jordan  were  more  civilized  than  is  generally 
admitted;  that  they  practiced  writing  nearly  a  thousand  years 
before  Christ,  if  not  much  earlier ;  that  they  had  a  complete. 


•388  BIBLE    LANDS. 

alphabet  of  tlieir  own  language,  and  kept  correct  records  of 
important  events ;  that  in  writing,  the  same  characters  were 
used  by  all  the  Semitic  nations ;  and  tliat  the  Phoenicians  and 
Hebrew  alphabets  are  closely  allied,  if  not  identical,  in  their 
origin.  It  also  illustrates  the  history  of  onr  own  language,  for 
the  whole  of  the  Greek  alphabet  is  here  found  in  its  primitive 
state,  not  only  similar  to,  but  scarcely  distinguishable  from,  the 
Phcenician ;  answering  fully  the  objections  that  have  been 
made  to  Psalm  cxix,  and  other  alphabetical  Psalms,  and  show- 
ing that  the  Greeks  must  have  received  their  entire  alphabet 
from  the  East ;  which  is  very  likely,  since  it  appears  that  Cad- 
mus signifies  the  Orient,  and  is  not  a  proper  name.  And,  what 
is  singular,  we  find  on  this  stone  many  of  the  lettei's  of  our 
own  alpliabet ;  showing  that  the  characters  in  use  to-day  are 
very  similar  to  those  used  in  the  days  of  Moses. 

This  is  the  first  fragment  recovered  of  Moabite  literature, 
and  all  that  is  extant  except  what  is  preserved  in  the  Mosaic 
records.  The  finding  of  this  stone  is  like  the  recovery  of  a 
lost  chapter  from  the  inspired  volume,  and,  without  doing  vio- 
lence to  the  text,  might  be  added  to  the  Second  Book  of  Kings. 
The  first  chapter  of  that  book  oj^ens  with  the  declaration, 
"  Then  Moab  rebelled  against  Israel  after  the  death  of  Ahab." 
The  subject  then  changes,  and  nothing  more  is  said  of  this  re- 
volt till  we  come  to  the  third  chapter,  when  the  kings  of  Israel, 
Judah,  and  Edom  go  forth  to  suppress  the  rebellion.  On  this 
monument  we  have  the  particulars  given  us  of  this  war  :  who 
the  king  of  Moab  was,  where  he  lived,  the  cities  he  built,  the 
god  be  worshiped,  how  he  took  Nebo,  what  he  did  with  the 
prisoners,  and  finally,  in  his  desperation,  sacrificing  his  eldest 
son,  and  heir  to  his  throne,  on  the  esplanade  of  his  citadel  at 
Kerak,  in  sight  of  all  Israel. 


DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  STONE.  339 

For  near  three  thousand  years  this  inscription  had  been  lying 
among  tlie  rubbisli  of  a  ruined  city.  Its  preservation  was  en- 
tirely owing  to  the  quality  of  the  stone  upon  which  it  was  en- 
graved— hard,  black  basalt,  requiring  a  diamond  to  cut  it — and 
its  discovery  was  purely  accidental.  The  lirst  European  to  see 
it  was  Rev.  F.  A.  Kline,  an  English  clergyman  of  Jerusalem, 
who  was  passing  through  Moab,  and  had  his  attention  called  to 
it  by  a  friendly  Arab  in  the  summer  of  1868.  The  value  of 
the  stone  was  not  known  at  first,  and  for  more  than  a  year  it 
remained  where  first  found,  on  the  surface  of  the  ground,  in  a 
depression  between  two  hills  covered  with  ruins,  in  the  north- 
west corner  of  Dibon.  When  discovered  it  was  lying  with  the 
inscription  uppermost,  and  in  a  perfect  state  of  preservation ; 
but  unfortunately,  through  a  rivalry  that  sprang  up  among 
the  Bedouins  in  reference  to  the  backsheesh,  the  Ishmaelite, 
Saleem  el  Kari,  who  first  found  it,  kindled  a  fire  beneath  the 
stone,  and  by  throwing  cold  water  upon  it  when  heated  broke 
this  invaluable  monument  of  antiquity  into  ten  thousand  pieces. 
About  seven  tenths  of  the  fragments  were  afterward  recovered, 
and  are  now  in  the  Louvre,  at  Paris.  There  were  over  one 
thousand  neatly  cut  letters  on  the  tablet  arranged  in  thirty-four 
lines.  About  seven  hundred  of  these  letters  have  been  secured, 
which,  with  the  "  squeezes  "  taken  before  and  after  its  destruc- 
tion, give  a  pretty  correct  idea  of  the  record. 

The  language  is  very  expressive,  and  the  sentences  carefully 
punctuated.  It  was  probably  placed  by  the  king  in  front  of 
:Some  temple  to  commemorate  his  victories ;  and  from  the  facts 
set  forth  we  learn,  that  after  Solomon's  reign  Moab  again  be- 
came an  independent  nation  ;  that  it  was  known  then  as  the 
land  of  Moal),  or  Meab ;  that  Mesha  was  king,  and  Dibon  its 

capital ;  that  they  were  oppressed  forty  years  by  the  house  of 
22 


340  BIBLE   LANDS. 

Omri,  father  of  Aliab  and  founder  of  Samarfa  ;  tPiat  Jehovah 
was  generally  known  among  the  nations  as  Israel's  God,  and 
Chemosh  as  the  god  of  the  Moabites.  Mesha  goes  to  war  with 
Israel,  and  this  monumental  slab  was  erected  to  commemorate 
his  deeds. 

We  are  indebted  to  that  eminent  archaeologist,  Clerinont- 
Ganneau,  for  the  most  correct  translation  of  this  invaluable- 
record.  Other  portions  of  the  stone  have  more  recently  been: 
recovered  by  M.  Clermont-Ganneau,  from  whom  we  learn,  in 
addition  to  the  above,  that  the  name  of  Mesha's  father  was^ 
Chamos-Gad ;  that  he  was  a  native  of  Dibon,  and  among  other 
exploits  took  Ar,  or  Rabbath-Moab,  and  slew  Ariel,  probably 
Benaiah,  one  of  David's  mighty  men,  who  had  slain  two  lion-^ 
like  men  of  Moab.' 

How  strange  that  a  chapter  from  the  word  of  God,  after 
lying  for  nearly  thirty  centuries  among  the  ruins  of  a  pagan 
temple,  should  thus  be  found  by  a  Christian  missionary  travel- 
ing through  the  land ! 

The  Bible  does  not  claim  to  narrate  all  the  events  of  the  past,, 
only  the  most  important,  and  such  as  relate  to  God's  purposes, 
in  the  redemption  of  n^.an.  So,  really,  we  are  no  wiser  relig- 
iously by  this  discovery.  Still,  it  is  gratifying  in  this  age  of 
skepticism,  when  the  authenticity  of  the  Scriptures  is  often 
called  into  question,  to  find  among  the  vestiges  of  a  former 
remote  civilization  such  a  record  of  Jewish  history  and  to  re- 
cover from  King  Mesha's  own  royal  library  a  lapidary  volume 
fully  corroborating  the  truth  of  revelation. 
'  2  Samuel  xxiii,  2(L 


CHAPTER    III. 


MOUNT  PISGAH. 


Its  Identity  Established — Wady  Musa — The  Outpourings  of  Pisgah — High  Places 
of  Baal — King's  Highway — Moabite  Images — Grand  Outlook. 

THE  dream  of  my  life  has  at  last  been  realized.     From  boy- 
hood 1  had  been  singing  in  my  heart, 

"  Could  I  but  climb  where  Moses  stood." 

That  desire  has  just  been  gratified.  My  feet  have  stood  on 
Pisgah,  and  with  my  natural  vision  I  have  looked  beyond  the 
Jordan,  and  viewed  "  the  landscape  o'er." 

Few  places  mentioned  in  the  Bible  have  been  more  fre- 
quently discussed  than  the  situation  of  Pisgah.  Yet,  down  to 
the  present,  its  precise  locality  had  been  undetermined.  This 
was  owing  to  the  danger  attending  a  thorough  exploration  of 
the  country,  from  the  hostility  of  the  Bedouins  to  all  foreign- 
ers, especially  Christians.  All  these  tribes  are  uncivilized  and 
rapacious,  and  it  would  be  madness  to  attempt  to  go  through 
their  territory  without  permission  and  proper  escort.  "VVe  had 
many  adventures  with  these  wild  sons  of  Ishmael,  on  two  oc- 
casions being  compelled  at  midnight,  Arab-like, 

"  To  fold  our  tents  and  steal  away." 

We,  however,  accomplished  our  purpose  :  making  safel}^  the 
tour  of  Moab  and  Edom,  and,  at  least  to  our  own  satisfaction, 
fixing   many  localities  hitherto   unknown — among   them    the 


Pisgah  of  Moses. 


341 


342  BIBLE    LANDS. 

All  who  have  investigated  the  subject  will  admit  that  this 
mountain  must  be  in  the  immediate  vicinity  designated.  To 
cm*  mind  the  arguments  adduced  are  conclusive  in  fixing  its 
locality  on  the  highest  summit  of  the  Xebo  range,  known 
among  the  natives  as  Jebel  I^eby,  or  Mountain  of  the  Prophet, 
a  bold  promontory  about  five  miles  west  of  Heshbon,  where 
the  mountain  breaks  off  abruptly,  falling  in  rocky  terraces 
down  to  the  Salt  Sea  and  plain  of  Shittim,  four  thousand  feet 
below. 

In  determining  the  position  of  this  mountain  we  have  to 
rely  upon  the  scriptural  account  and  natural  topography  of 
the  country.  The  inspired  record  is  sufficiently  clear  on  the 
subject :  "  And  Moses  went  up  from  the  Plains  of  Moab  unto 
the  mountain  of  Nebo,  to  the  top  of  Pisgah,  that  is  over  against 
Jericho,"  etc'  Here  are  several  conditions  to  be  met  in  de- 
termining its  locality.  Pisgah  must  overlook  the  Dead  Sea 
and  Plains  of  Moab.  There  must  be  an  easy  ascent  to  its  top 
from  the  valley  below.  It  must  stand  opposite  to  or  facing  Jeri- 
cho ;  must  have  two  or  more  summits,  with  a  ravine  separating 
it  from  Beth-peor,  and  a  field  capable  of  cultivation  on  its  top, 
with  springs  of  water  flowing  from  beneath  it ;  and,  finally,  it 
must  command  a  view  of  the  whole  of  "Western  Palestine,  and 
trans-Jordanic  Palestine,  from  Dan  to  Zoar.  Now,  all  these 
conditions  are  met  in  the  locality  we  have  given. 

Nebo  is  the  name  of  the  mountain — a  spur  of  the  "  Abarim  " 
range.  This  mountain  has  several  sunnnits,  which  answer  to 
the  "high  places  of  Baal"  to  which  Balak  brought  Baalam. 
Pisgah,  which  signifies  the  height,  we  very  properly  apply  to 
the  highest  of  these  summits,  and  the  only  one  from  which  the 
"  utmost  sea,"  and  other  points  mentioned  in  the  narrative,  can 

'  Deuteronomy  xxxiv,  2. 


LOCALITY   OF   PISGAH.  343 

be  seen.  Ruins,  as  of  an  old  altar,  are  found  upon  this  hill; 
we,  however,  attach  but  little  importance  to  this  circumstance, 
as  the  remains  of  altars  and  temples  are  found  on  all  the 
"  high  places  of  Moab." 

There  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  the  i3lace  where  the  Israelites 
were  encamped  at  the  time  of  their  leader's  death.  It  is  defl 
nitely  given, on  "the  Plains  of  Moab,  by  Jordan,  near  Jericho."^ 
This  alone  should  settle  the  position  of  Pisgah  ;  as  Moses  locates 
it  directly  east  of  the  Jordan,  overlooking  the  Plains  of  Moab, 
and  facing  Jericho,  which  is  the  exact  position  of  the  mountain 
for  which  we  contend.  By  referring  to  the  interview  between 
Balak  and  Balaam,  you  will  find  that  the  king  of  Moab 
brought  the  Assyrian  propliet  to  the  "  field  of  Zophim,  to  the 
top  of  Pisgah  ;  "'  wliicli  literally  means  to  the  cultivated  field 
on  the  '•  top  of  Pisgah,"  and  very  truthfully  applies  to  this 
mountain.  As  we  rode  over  the  undulating  ridge  to  the  east  it 
looked  like  a  beautiful  meadow,  with  here  and  there  cultivated 
patches — the  wheat  in  some  places  up  to  our  saddle-skirts,  and 
even  on  the  top  and  down  the  slopes  of  the  mountain  we  found 
fig  and  juniper  trees  growing ;  and  in  one  place  discovered  an 
old  wine-press  ten  feet  by  eight  cut  in  the  solid  rock,  two  feet 
deep,  showing  that  there  must  have  been  at  one  time  vineyards 
here. 

Moses,  in  assigning  to  the  children  of  Reuben  their  portion 
of  the  territory,  names,  among  other  places,  Dibon,  Heshbon 
and  "  Ashdoth-Pisgah  " — the  outpourings  or  "  springs  of  Pis- 
gah," as  rendered  in  our  translation.^  Here  we  have  natural 
landmarks  by  which  Pisgah  may  be  determined  to  a  certainty ; 
it  being  the  highest  peak,  opposite  and  nearest  Jericho,  from 
beneath  which  the  fountains  pour. 

'  Xiimbers  xxxi,  12.        *  Numbers  xxiii,  14.         ^Deuteronomy  iv,  49. 


344  BIBLE    LANDS. 

Sweeping  round  the  base  of  this  mountain  on  the  east  and 
north  is  a  deep  ravine,  extending  down  to  the  Jordan,  up 
which  Moses  could  easily  have  ascended  from  the  plain  to  the 
top ;  and,  what  is  remarkable,  this  valley  is  still  called  by  the 
Arabs  Wady  Musa — the  Valley  of  Moses.  Near  the  head  of 
this  ravine,  bursting  from  beneath  the  highest  summit,  are  a 
number  of  living  springs  of  clear,  pure,  cool  water,  forming 


SPRINRS  OF  HOSES. 


quite  a  brook,  that  leaps  in  beautiful  cascades  down  the  mount- 
ain side.  These  springs  are  known  as  Ayun  Musa — Springs  of 
Moses — and  correspond  exactly  with  the  outpourings  of  Pisgah. 
In  fact,  one  of  the  springs  literally  pours  from  a  natural  tunnel 
in  the  limestone  rock,  and,  after  flowing  a  short  distance  along 
the  projecting  cliff,  at  one  bound  leaps  fully  fifty  feet  into  the 
gorge  below.     These  springs  are  an  argument  in  favor  of  this 


WADY    MUSA    AND    BETH-PEOE. 


345 


locality,  which  will  not  apply  to  any  other  mountain  east  of 
the  Jordan. 

After  the  Lord  showed  his  servant  "  the  land  which  he  sware 
lunto  Abraham,"  it  is  recorded  that  Moses  died,  and  was 
•*'  buried  in  a  valley  over  against  Beth-peor."  Now,  directly 
•east  of  this  mountain,  across  Wady  Musa,  is  another  eminence, 
with  the  tomb  of  some  sheik  and  ruins  upon  it,  which  in  every 
respect  answers  to  Beth-peor ;  that  is,  the  House  of  Peor,  or 
place  where  Baal-Peor,  the  god  of  the  Moabites,  was  worshiped. 
'This  deity  corresponds  with  the  Roman  Priapus,  and  is  iden 


MOABITE    IMAGES   FOUND    NEAR    PISGAH. 


tical  with  Chemosh,  the  national  god  of  the  Moabites,  whose 
name  is  frequently  mentioned  on  the  celebrated  Moabite  stone, 
found  at  Dibon,  only  a  few  miles  south  of  this. 

The  religious  rites  attending  the  worship  of  Baal-Peor  were 
■of  the  most  indecent  character,  as  the  name  indicates,  and  as 
may  be  seen  from  the  idols  and  coins  recently  found  in  Moab ; 
and  it  is  a  singulai  coincidence  that  within  a  few  years  hun- 
dreds of  obscene  idols  of  this  god,  made  chiefly  of  terra-cotta, 
hav^e  been  found  in  this  vicinity,  and  are  now  on  exhibition  in 
the  Berlin  museum.     "When  the  children  of  Israel  entered  the 


346  BIBLE   LANDS. 

country  and  pitched  their  tents  "  before  Nebo,"  they  became 
enamored  with  the  daughters  of  Moab,  and  joined  in  the  wor- 
ship of  this  deity,  thus  provoking  the  anger  of  the  Lord,  who 
sent  a  plague  upon  them,  and  destroyed  twenty-four  thousand 
of  the  people  for  their  apostasy.  The  identity  of  this  place 
we  regard  as  additional  proof  in  support  of  our  position. 

The  valley  over  against  Beth-peor  is,  beyond  doubt,  Wady 
Musa,  or  the  deep  ravine  between  Pisgah  and  Beth-peor,  which 
leads  down  to  the  Plains  of  Moab,  and  up  which  Moses  made 
the  ascent  of  Pisgah,  and  the  same  town  which  the  children  of 
Israel  may  have  passed.  Ayun  Musa,  or  the  Springs  of  Moses, 
referred  to  above,  are  also  in  this  ravine,  pouring  down  from 
over  a  shelving  rock  their  limpid  waters,  causing  the  whole 
valley  to  rejoice.  Here,  it  is  said,  the  servant  of  God  rested 
on  his  weary  way  up  the  mountain.  Poor  pilgrim !  another 
halt,  and  thou  shalt  reach  thy  journey's  end !  Slake  thy  thirst 
for  the  last  time;  for  from  the  peak  that  towers  above  thy 
head  thy  pure,  meek  spirit  shall  return  to  God.  There  are 
many  caves  and  rock-tombs  in  the  side  of  Pisgah,  facing  Beth- 
peor;  and  if  the  great  prophet  was  not  translated,  no  doubt 
somewhere  in  this  lovely  valley,  among  the  blooming  lilies  and 
babbling  waterfalls,  forever  concealed  from  mortal  eyes  by  the 
wild  flowers  and  ferns  that  hang  in  drapery  rich  from  every 
cliff,  is  the  grave  of  Moses — God's  faithful  servant,  and  earth's 
greatest  lawgiver. 

Having  carefully  examined  all  the  mountains  from  the  Jab- 
bok  to  the  Arnon,  we  are  fully  persuaded  this  is  the  only  one 
that  can  fulfill  all  the  conditions  in  the  scriptural  account — 
Mount  Gilead  being  too  far  north,  and  Attarus  entirely  too  far 
south.  Then,  neither  of  these  mountains  are  opposite  Jericho ; 
there  never  could  have  been  a  cultivated  field  on  their  rocky 


SPRINGS   OF   PISGAH.  'S-iT 

snniiiiits;  they  do  not  overlook  the  Plains  of  Moab,  and  the 
outlook  from  their  tops  is  too  circumscribed. 

Tlie  Pisgah  we  contend  for  meets  all  these  conditions  ;  the 
scriptural  topography  harmonizing  exactly  with  the  actual 
facts.  We  have  here  the  Nebo  range,  with  "  the  high  places- 
of  Baal" — the  mountain  with  two  summits  facing  Jericlio, 
with  the  springs  gushing  from  beneath  it ;  Beth-peor  on  the 
east,  with  Wady  Musa  sloping  gently  down  to  the  plain  ;  and 
on  the  top  traces  of  a  cultivated  field,  from  which  can  be  had 
the  most  extensive  view  in  all  the  land.  This  site  agrees  with 
both  Jerome  and  Eusebius,  who  locate  Pisgah  "  six  miles  to  the 
west  of  Heshbon  " — the  exact  distance  by  the  old  road ;  and 
also  with  Drs.  Strong  and  Bidgaway,  with  whom  the  writer 
first  visited  this  mountain  ;  and  in  all  essentials  with  Prof. 
Paine,  who,  however,  contends  for  the  more  westerly  peak. 

In  examining  this  locality,  much  to  our  surprise  we  found,, 
on  a  second  projection  of  Nobo,  about  half  a  mile  west  of  Pis- 
gah, extensive  ruins  of  a  city  not  marked  on  any  map.  In  some 
places  the  walls  were  standing  twenty  feet  high  ;  many  prostrate 
columns  were  lying  about,  as  if  thrown  down  bj'  an  earthquake; 
we  also  found  large  cisterns,  rock-hewn  tombs,  and  massive 
foundations  as  of  a  strongly  fortified  place,  in  all  probability 
the  remains  of  the  city  of  Nebo.  Tlie  ruins  indicated  a  re- 
mote antiquity,  as  there  was  no  trace  of  Grecian  or  Roman 
architecture  among  them.  Nebo  is  mentioned  anion 2^  the  cities 
rebuilt  by  the  tribe  of  Reuben,  and  was  built,  doubtless,  on 
this  second  knoll  for  defensive  purposes.  Eusebius  refers 
to  it,  and  locates  it  in  this  neighborhood.  Isaiah  classifies 
it  with  Heshbon,  Dibon,  and  Baal-Meon,  all  in  this  vicinity  ; 
and  Jeremiah,  in  denouncing  the  judgments  of  God  upon 
Moab,  exclaims,  "  Woe   unto    Nebo,  for  it  is  spoiled — judg- 


'■^•1^  BIBLE    LANDS. 

ineiit  is  come  upon  Dibon  and  Nebo— Moab  shall  howl  over 
-^Nebo." 

We  also  found  the  track  of  an  old  paved  road  in  good  pres- 
ervation, with  the  side  walls  standing,  leading  from  this  city 
-in  the  direction  of  Aroer,  which  undoubtedly  is  the  "  King's 
Highway,"  by  which  the  Israelites  entered  Canaan  !  From 
the  Mosaic  record  it  appears  they  came  by  this  highway  to  the 
"  top  of  Pisgah,"  pitching  their  tents  "  in  the  mountains  of 
-Abarim,  before  Nebo," '  that  is,  in  the  valley  or  table-land, 
"over  against  Beth-peor." "  The  discovery  of  tliis  city  and 
road  we  consider,  apart  from  the  interest  they  possess,  an  addi- 
tional argument  in  support  of  the  identity  of  Pisgah,  establish- 
ing beyond  controversy  its  site,  leaving  no  longer  a  doubt  as  to 
the  verity  of  the  spot  where  "  Moses,  the  servant  of  the  Lord," 
closed  his  eyes  on  earth.' 

The  view  from  the  top  of  this  mountain  is  sublimely  grand. 
Nothing  on  earth  can  equal  it  in  sacred  and  historic  interest.  I 
:shall  never  forget  the  rapture  of  that  vision.  At  our  feet  the 
Sea  of  Death  rolled  its  sullen  waves  over  the  once  fertile  Plain 
■of  Siddim.  To  the  north  the  winding  course  of  the  Jordan 
could  be  traced  to  its  fountain  head,  with  Hermon,  standing  like 
an  old  sentinel  with  frosty  locks,  guarding  the  source  of  "  the 
river  of  God."  To  the  west  the  mountains  of  Western  Palestine, 
-dotted  with  cities  and  villages,  were  spread  out  like  a  panorama 
l>efore  us.  Far  away  to  the  south  was  Mount  Hor,  throwing 
lier  misty  veil  over  the  grave  of  Aaron  on  its  highest  summit. 
Far  away  to  the  north,  "  goodly  Lebanon,"  still  clothed  in  her 
wintry  robes.  On  our  left  Hebron  loomed  up  in  the  distance, 
as  if  proud  of  her  sacred  charge — the  tomb  of  the  patriarchs. 
>On  our  right,  tinged  with  a  bluisli  haze,  were  the  Galilean  hills, 

■"  Numbers  xxxiii,  47.         '  Deuteronomy  iii,  29.  *  Deuteronomy  xxxiv,  5. 


OUTLOOK  FROM   PISGAH.  349 

■Nvith  Nazareth  nestling  on  tlieir  bosom.  Directly  in  front  of 
us  was  the  ''  city  of  palm-trees  ; "  and  just  back  of  it  the  mount- 
ain of  Christ's  temptation  and  the  brook  Cherith,  where  Elijah 
was  fed  by  the  ravens  ;  and  beyond  Herodium,  the  mausoleum 
of  that  monster — Herod  the  Great.  And  still  beyond,  near  the 
summit  of  the  Judean  mountains.  Bethlehem,  to  the  Christian 
the  most  sacred  spot  on  earth  ;  and  a  little  to  the  north  Jerusa- 
lem, so  beautiful  for  situation  and  hallowed  in  its  associations  ; 
and  close  by  Olivet,  beaming  in  the  sunlight  like  the  gate- way 
to  glory  ;  and  just  beyond  JSTeby  Samwel,  where  Israel's  last 
judge  lived,  died,  and  awaits  the  resurrection.  Still  farther 
north  could  be  seen  Gerizim  and  Ebal,  pverlooking  the  well  of 
Jacob  and  the  tomb  of  Joseph  ;  and  beyond  Carmel,  stretching 
away  to  the  "  utmost  sea,"  the  Mediterranean  Sea.  TJien  came 
the  depression  of  the  Plain  of  Esdraelon,  guarded  by  Tabor  and 
Gilboa — scenes  of  some  of  the  most  stirring  events  in  sacred 
history.  The  Mount  of  Beatitudes  was  only  partly  seen,  but 
•east  of  the  Jordan,  Mizpah-Gilead,  where  Jacob  and  Laban  last 
parted,  was  in  full  view,  with  the  tomb  of  Hosea  on  its  summit. 
And  eastward,  as  far  as  the  Hauran  and  Mountains  of  Arabia, 
rolled  the  Belka,  the  beautiful  Belka — one  vast  fertile  plain, 
fragrant  with  flowers,  and  covered  with  the  flocks,  herds,  and 
black  tents  of  the  Bedouins,  who  now  roam  at  will  over  the 
ruins  of  those  giant  cities  that  mark  the  march  of  civilization, 
and  clearly  indicate  that 

"  Westward  the  star  of  empire  takes  its  way." 

Words,  however,  can  never  describe  the  grand  outlook  from 
this  lofty  eminence.  Only  such  as  have  enjoyed  the  prospect 
•can  fully  appreciate  it. 


CHAPTER   IV. 


LAND      OF      GILEAD. 


Mount  Gilead— Name  Applied  to  all  Eastern  Palestine— Home  of  Elijah— Jephthab 
— Ramoth-Gilead — Eemarkable  Euins — Arak  el  Emir — Jerash— Hella — Ga- 
dara — Balm  of  Gilead. 

nPHE  mountainous  district  lying  north  of  Moab,  and  extend- 
■*■  ing  along  the  Jordan  like  a  massive  wall  from  its  mouth  to 
the  lower  spurs  of  Hermon,  was  known  as  Gilead,  deriving  its^ 
name  from  Mount  Gilead/  or  Mizpah  Galeed,  where  Jacob  and 
Laban  had  their  last  interview,  and  set  up  their  memorial  stones 
as  a  witness  between  them.  This  country  was  early  conquered 
and  absorbed  by  Sihon,  lung  of  the  Amorites,  and  Og,  king 
of  Bashan.^  It  afterward  belonged  to  Gad,  and  though  the- 
name  survived,  and  sometimes  applied  to  the  whole  of  Eastern 
Palestine,^  the  aboriginal  inhabitants  became  extinct. 

The  Adwan  tribe  of  Bedouins,  of  which  Ali  Diab  is  sheik, 
now  hold  the  country,  and  have  generally  been  friendly  to 
Americans.  We  have  visited  their  camp  frequently,  and  al- 
ways received  a  hearty  welcome.  The  sheik's  tent  can  be 
easily  distinguished  from  the  rest  by  the  number  of  lances- 
stuck  in  the  ground  around  it,  with  shafts  from  twelve  to  four- 
teen feet  long,  and  often  ornamented  with  tufts  of  black  or 
white  ostrich  feathers  near  the  blade.  These  plumes  are  their 
battle-flags,  and  the  warriors  who  carry  the  black  feathers  on. 
their  spears  are  the  invincibles,  who  never  retreat,  surrender,, 
or  show  mercy;  but  those  with  white  plumes  will  both  grant 

' Genesis  xxxi,  25-49.        'Joshua  xii,  1-5.        'Deuteronomy  iii,  12. 
350 


BEDOUIN   HOSPITALITY. 


351 


favors  and  ask  for  quarters.  Hence  the  familiar  saying,  "  Show 
the  white  feather."  Their  entertainments  are  usually  given  in 
the  sheik's  tent,  without  any  great  display  or  ceremony,  the 
guests  sitting  on  mats  or  rugs  spread  on  the  ground,  and  all  eat- 
ing out  of  the  same  large  dish.     Such  articles  as  knives,  forks. 


ALI  DIAB,   SHEIK  OF  THE  ADWANS. 


spoons,  and  plates,  are  unknown  among  them.  If  you  are  a  per- 
son of  distinction,  and  the  sheik  desires  to  show  you  great  re- 
spect, he  will  seat  you  on  his  left,  then  dip  his  hand  into  the 
mess  of  pottage  first,  and,  taking  out  a  piece  of  the  kid  or 


352  BIBLE    LANDS. 

handful  of  leutiles,  thrust  it  into  your  mouth,  almost  choking- 
you ;  but  woe  betide  the  guest  who  refuses  tliis  special  mark  of 
attention.  All  visitors  are  required  to  conform  to  these  usages. 
As  "  when  in  Rome  we  do  as  the  Romans  do,"  so,  on  the  same 
principle,  when  in  Turkey  we  must  do  as  the  Tv/rTceya  do,  that 
is,  gobble  every  thing  down.  After  the  repast  the  dogs  lick  the 
platter,  when  it  is  set  aside  all  ready  for  the  next  meal,  no 
washing  of  dishes  being  required.  Liberal  backsheesh  is  gen- 
eraEy  expected  in  return  for  their  hospitality. 


ARABS  EATING. 


Among  so  many  mountains  it  is  difficult  at  this  late  date  to 
determine  the  particular  eminence  where  Laban  overtook  Jacob, 
and  that  gave  its  name  to  this  whole  province.  It,  however,  is 
generally  conceded  to  Jebel  Jil'ad,  the  Arabic  of  Mount  Gilead, 
a  peak  that  rises  to  the  height  of  four  thousand  seven  hundred 
and  sixty  feet  above  the  sea,  and  not  only  retains  the  name,  but 
meets  all  the  conditions,  of  the  text.  This  mountain  is  also 
known  as  Jebel  Osha,  from  the  reputed  tomb  of  the  Prophet 
Hosea  being  on  its  summit ;  and  is  supposed  to  be  Mizpah-Gil- 
cad,  where  Jephthah  made  the  rash  vow  which  cost  the  life  of 


MOUNT  GILEAD.  353; 

his  only  child,  whose  untimely  death  the  maidens  of  the  land; 
still  lament,  by  the  annual  observance  of  a  day  of  mourning  on. 
this  lofty  mountain.  David,  when  driven  from  his  kingdom, 
by  the  wrathful  Saul,  found  here  an  asylum  for  himself  and 
parents.  Elijah  was  a  native  of  Gilead,  and  from  the  plain 
below,  near  the  Jordan,  mounted  the  heavens  in  his  chariot  of 
lire.  As  we  rode  over  the  same  plain,  a  whirlwind  swept  across 
our  path,  and  we  could  almost  fancy  we  saw  the  fiery  prophet 
ascend  the  skies. 

Sweeping  round  the  base  of  the  mountain  on  the  north  is 
the  river  Jabbok  and  the  ford  where  Jacob  spent  the  night 
he  prevailed  with  God ;  and  only  half  an  hour's  ride  from  here 
is  Ramoth-gilead,  so  celebrated  in  Jewish  history  as  one  of  the 
cities  of  refuge,  where  Aliab  received  his  mortal  wound,  and 
the  impetuous  Jehu  was  anointed  king  of  Israel. 

The  view  from  this  eminence  is  magnificent ;  in  some  respects 
even  finer  than  from  Xebo,  taking  in  the  entire  Jordan  Valley 
and  all  Western  Palestine  from  Lebanon  on  the  north  to  the 
Dead  Sea  on  the  south.  This  was  the  landscape  on  which 
Abraham  first  gazed  as  he  journeyed  over  this  same  mountain 
on  his  way  to  the  Promised  Land.  Some  have  contended  that 
this  Mount  is  the  Pisgah  of  Moses,  but  no  one  who  has  ever 
visited  the  two  mountains  will  entertain  such  an  idea  for  a 
moment.  Except  in  the  extensive  outlook,  Jebel  Jil'ad  does 
not  fulfill  a  single  condition  of  the  true  Pisgah  ;  then,  it  is  at 
least  twenty  miles  too  far  north.  On  the  summit  of  this 
mountain  the  naked  rock  crops  out,  forming  a  natural  watch- 
tower  from  which  a  beacon  light  could  be  seen  half  over 
Palestine.  Excavated  in  this  rock  are  some  curious  tombs  and 
cisterns,  with  steps  leading  down  to  them,  and  under  the  ledge 
that    projects  toward  the  west  three  large   caves,  forty  feet. 


654  BIBLE   LANDS. 

square,  one  witli  seats  cut  in  the  rock  round  three  sides,  with  a 
recess  facing  the  entrance,  as  if  designed  for  a  place  of  worship 
or  council  chamber.  As  we  entered  one  of  these  caves  the 
largest  eagle  1  ever  saw  flew  out,  an  auspicious  omen,  the 
Arabs  say.  This  was  Israel's  great  rendezvous.  Here  they 
held  their  councils  of  war,  and  probably  in  these  caverns 
Jephthah  and  his  desperadoes  hiid  tlieir  plans  for  the  recon- 
quest  of  the  country  from  the  Aniorites. 

This  whole  laud  at  one  time  must  have  been  thickly  pop- 
ulated and  highly  civilized.  Every  few  miles  you  come  upon 
the  remains  of  cities,  some  of  them  dating  back  to  the  days  of 
the  Rephaim.  The  great  number  of  these  ruins  prove  a  dense 
population  ;  and  the  magnitude  and  elegance  of  their  works, 
their  numerous  reservoirs  and  aqueducts,  their  well-paved 
roads  and  rock-hevvn  tombs,  their  wine  and  oil  presses,  and 
the  inscriptions  in  some  instances  found  upon  their  monuments, 
evince  a  high  degree  of  civilization. 

The  Castle  of  Hyrcanus,  about  fifteen  miles  south  of  Mount 
Gilead,  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable  ruins  in  Persea.  It  was 
built  by  Hyrcanus  I.,  an  Asmonean  prince,  one  hundred  and 
ninety  years  before  Christ,  on  a  terrace  of  the  mountain  twenty- 
five  hundred  feet  above  the  Jordan  ;  a  secure  position,  near  tlie 
source  of  a  mountain  stream  abounding  with  fish,  and  shaded 
with  large  trees.  On  a  knoll  in  the  center  of  this  beautiful 
plateau,  surrounded  by  a  strong  wall  and  deep  fosse,  stood  the 
castle  or  fortress.  The  only  entrance  to  it  was  by  a  massive 
gate-way  of  large  beveled  stones,  well  dressed,  with  a  beading 
running  up  the  angles.  The  frieze  of  this  portal  was  an  enor- 
mous stone,  in  the  Ionic  style,  and  very  beautiful.  There  was 
a  colonnade  in  front  of  the  castle  composed  of  plain  and  fluted 
columns  with  Ionic  and  Egyptian  capitals — rather  a  strange 


CASTLE    OF   HYKCANUS.  355 

medley.  The  building  itseK  was  constructed  of  great  stone 
slabs,  hard  as  marble,  from  fifteen  to  twenty  feet  long,  by  ten 
feet  wide  and  two  feet  thick,  just  the  thickness  of  the  wall. 
These  slabs  stood  on  their  edge,  and  were  held  together  by 
knobs  about  eight  inches  square,  cut  on  the  upper  edge  of  the 
lower  stones  and  fitting  snugly  in  corresponding  sockets  in  the 


CASTL£  OF  HTBCANUS. 

next  course  above,  and  so  on  to  the  topmost  course,  l^o  mor- 
tar or  iron  clamps  were  used.  Above  the  second  course, 
or  twenty  feet  from  the  foundation,  ran  a  Doric  belt-course, 
highly  ornamented,  and  above  this  a  frieze  twelve  feet  high, 

formed  of  colossal  sculptured  slabs,  with  enormous  lions  in  alto 
23 


356 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


relievo ;  and  above  this,  still  another  entablature  and  frieze  in 
the  Ionic  style.  Most  of  this  once  beautiful  edifice  is  now  in 
ruins — fragments  of  broken  columns  and  cornices  strew  the 
ground ;  but  the  foundations  and  several  courses  of  the  walls, 
and  a  few  of  the  sculptured  slabs,  are  yet  in  situ,  having 
resisted  the  storms  and  earthquakes  of  more  than  two  thousand 
years.  The  account  of  this  palace,  as  given  by  Josephus,'  is 
very  correct,  to  which  the  reader  is  referred  for  details. 


ARAK    EL    EMIR. 


Ten  minutes'  walk  from  the  castle  is  Arak  el  Emir,  the  rock 
dwelling  and  stables  of  the  prince,  a  perfect  labyrinth  of  dark 
passages  and  haunted  cells.  The  road  from  the  fortress  to  this, 
rock  castle  is  clearly  defined  by  two  rows  of  squared  perforated 
stones,  standing  a  few  feet  apart,  as  if  for  some  kind  of  a  signal 

'  Antiquities,  xii,  4. 


ROCK-HEWN  TOMBS.  357 

or  railing.  This  unique  castle  consists  of  numerous  halls, 
chambers,  and  stables  cut  in  the  solid  rock,  and  rising  tier 
above  tier  in  the  face  of  a  bold  cliff,  almost  inaccessible. 

The  first  hall  you  enter  is  a  large  square  room  with  vaulted 
ceiling  and  cornice,  perhaps  a  council  chamber  or  banqueting 
hall.  On  the  right  of  the  entrance  is  a  mutilated  inscription 
in  old  Samaritan  characters.  Still  higher  up  we  reach  by  a  very 
steep  and  difficult  path  a  narrow  passage  or  rent  in  the  rock, 
which  leads  to  a  long  range  of  cells  for  all  purposes — some  for 
feasting  and  sleeping ;  others  for  attendants  and  guards ;  in 
some  instances  several  cells  communicating.  One  apartment, 
designed  for  a  stable,  was  large  enough  for  at  least  a  hun- 
dred horses ;  the  feeding  and  watering  troughs,  and  holes  for 
fastening  the  halters,  all  hewn  out  of  the  native  rock. 

The  approach  to  all  these  caves  is  difficult,  and  to  some  dan- 
gerous, it  being  necessary  in  places  to  creep  along  a  narrow  ledge 
on  your  hands  and  feet.  The  doorways  generally  are  so  small 
that  not  more  than  one  person  can  enter  at  a  time.  The  only 
entrance  to  one  suite  of  apartments  was  by  a  small  hole  through 
the  floor  of  the  cell  above,  concealed  by  a  stone  slab,  rendering 
it  impossible  for  an  enemy  to  force  an  entrance,  as  the  trap- 
door would  only  admit  one  man  at  a  time,  and  he  would  have 
to  drop  himself  from  the  ceiling  to  the  floor,  at  least  flfteen 
feet,  on  barbed  pikes.  There  is  a  deep  cistern  connected  with 
these  apartments,  and  in  all  probability  it  was  here  that  Hyr- 
canus  ended  his  unhappy  life.  When  he  built  this  strong- 
hold and  cut  out  these  numerous  hiding-places  in  the  cliffs  of 
the  mountain,  he  fancied  himself  secure ;  but  being  naturally 
timid  and  suspicious  was  kept  by  his  enemies  in  a  constant 
state  of  alarm,  and  after  seven  miserable  years  committed 
suicide  in  one  of  these  cells,  when  Antiochus  Epiphanes  laid 


358 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


siege  to  the  castle  and  fortress.  One  feels  very  sad  wandering 
through  these  dark  passages  and  tomb-hke  cells,  once  the  seat 
of  royalty,  now  the  habitation  of  wild  beasts  and  the  wilder 
children  of  the  desert.  Alexander,  who  built  the  fortress  of 
Machserus,  was  the  son  of  this  Hyrcanus. 

Crossing  the  Jabbok  at  Jacob's  ford,  we  began  the  ascent  of 
the  Mountains  of  Ajlun,  covered  with  forests  of  oak,  fir,  and 
terebinth.    It  was  somewhere  in  these  forests  that  the  rebellious 


OAK    OF    BASHAN. 

Absalom  came  to  his  ignoble  death.  The  stiff,  shaggy  branches 
of  the  oak  hang  very  low,  and  unless  a  person  is  careful  he  is 
likely  to  meet  with  the  same  mishap  that  befell  this  young 
man.  Biding  carelessly  under  one  of  these  trees  I  was  caught 
by  the  low  boughs  round  the  neck,  and  would  have  been  lifted 
from  the  saddle  and  left  dangling  in  the  air  had  my  horse  not 
suddenly  stopped. 

Two  hours  of  climbing  over  hills  and  rocks,  through  jungles 


JERASH.  861 

aDd  park-like  forests,  brought  us  to  an  open  country  of  low, 
rounded  ridges  and  verdant  valleys,  running  north  and  south, 
and  covered  \vith  the  remains  of  a  once  magnificent  city  known 
among  the  natives  as  Gerasa  or  Jerash,  In  some  respects,  these 
ruins  are  more  imposing  and  extensive  than  any  others  in 
Syria ;  not  so  colossal  as  those  at  Baalbec,  but  equally  classical 
and  more  vast.  It  appears  to  have  been  a  city  of  palaces,  tem- 
ples, and  other  public  edifices ;  and  one  is  perplexed  to  know 
where  the  people  came  from  to  fill  these  theaters  and  numer- 
ous temples. 

Though  most  of  the  city  is  a  heap  of  ruins,  much  of  its 
ancient  grandeur  remains.  Colonnades  fully  a  mile  in  length, 
■crossing  each  other  at  right  angles,  may  still  be  traced.  Tri- 
umphal arches  of  rich  design,  spanning  the  streets  at  different 
points,  may  still  be  seen.  One  of  several  bridges  over  the  val- 
ley and  stream  which  ran  through  the  midst  of  the  city  may 
€till  be  crossed.  Grand  gate-ways,  towere,  theaters,  baths,  and 
other  public  buildings,  some  almost  entire,  are  still  standing. 
Of  the  Forum  alone,  fifty-seven  columns,  with  their  entabla- 
ture, remain  erect,  and  throughout  the  city  not  less  than  five 
times  that  number  are  still  in  situ,  with  thousands  of  others 
lying  prostrate  and  broken  at  their  base.  The  Temple  of  the 
Sun,  of  which  only  eleven  columns  of  the  portico  remain,  must 
have  been  a  gem  of  Grecian  art.  Many  inscriptions  may  still 
be  seen  on  pedestal,  column,  and  architrave,  but  nothing  earlier 
than  the  Greek  and  Roman  period,  though  there  is  every  rea- 
son for  believing  that  this  city  existed  long  before  that  period. 
The  first  mention  made  of  Jerash  in  history  is  by  Josephus, 
who  gives  an  account  of  the  taking  of  the  place  by  Alexander 
Janneus,  B.  C.  85,'  showing  that  it  must  have  existed  prior  to 

'  Jewish  Wars,  i,  4,  8. 


362  BIBLE  LANDS. 

that  date.  And  from  the  fact  that  Mahanaim,  wliere  Jacob 
met  the  angels/  about  this  time  mysteriously  disappears  from 
history,  and  Jerasli  as  suddenly  springs  into  notice,  this  city 
is  now  generally  believed  to  be  the  place  where  the  Lord  ap- 
peared to  Jacob,  and  to  which  David  fled  for  protection  from 
Absalom,  and  monrned  so  piteously  over  his  son's  death.  It  is 
also  supposed  that  the  beautiful  Twenty-third  Psalm  was  written 
here.'  The  valley  of  the  Jabbok,  through  which  David  must 
have  fled,  with  his  enemies  lurking  behind  every  rock,  would 
represent  forcibly  "  the  Yalley  of  the  Shadow  of  Death,"  and 
the  shepherds  watching  their  flocks  would  naturally  suggest  the 
Lord's  constant  care  for  his  people.  ]^ot  a  soul  is  now  living 
on  the  site  of  the  once  opulent  city.  The  place  is  entirely 
deserted.  With  some  difficulty  we  clambered  up  into  the  room 
over  the  southern  gate — a  very  antique  and  curious  ruin,  with 
foliage  round  the  bases  of  the  columns — where  it  is  supposed- 
David  received  the  flrst  news  of  his  son's  death ;  and  when 
there,  we  could  almost  fancy  we  heard  that  stricken  father 
exclaiming  in  all  the  anguish  of  liis  soul,  "  O  my  son  Absalom ! 
my  son,  my  son  Absalom !  would  God  I  had  died  for  thee,  O 
Absalom,  my  son,  my  son  ! " ' 

Twenty  miles  north-west  of  Jerash,  on  a  terrace  of  the 
mountain  overlooking,  and  about  a  thousand  feet  above,  the 
Jordan  Yalley,  a  few  standing  columns  near  the  foundations  of 
some  old  buildings,  and  some  rock-hewn  tombs  in  the  side  of 
the  mountain  near  the  remains' of  a  temple  or  church,  mark 
the  site  of  ancient  Pella,  which  possesses  no  interest  to  the 
general  reader  except  as  the  city  of  refuge  for  the  Christians 
during  the  siege  of  Jerusalem  by  Titus. 

^  Genesis  xxxii,  1.  *  See  Sermon  by  Rev.  Slopford  Brooke. 

'  2  Samuel  xviii,  33. 


GADARA. 


36a 


Gadara,  tlie  most  northern  city  of  Gilead,  was  situated  on  a 
north-western  spur  of  the  mountains  just  south  of  the  Sea  of 
Galilee,  where  the  river  Hieromax  empties  into  the  Jordan,  and 
on  the  highway  between  Jerusalem  and  Damascus,  along  which 
the  Israelites  probably  traveled  when  taken  captives  to  Baby- 
lon. As  at  Jerash,  a  colonnade  street  ran  through  the  city,  the 
columns  of  which  are  all  lying  among  the  rubbish  of  ages,  but 


KCIXS   OF   GADARA. 


the  paved  road-bed,  with  the  ruts  worn  by  chariot  wheels,  may 
still  be  distinctly  seen.  The  remains  of  extensive  fortifications, 
two  theaters,  and  what  appears  to  have  been  the  Forum,  are  easilj 
traced  out ;  also  the  ruins  of  the  Cathedral  of  Gadara.  North- 
east of  the  city  are  many  rock-cut  tombs  similar  to  those  about 
Jerusalem,  some  quite  large,  with  stone  doors  still  swinging  on 


364  BIBLE  LANDS. 

their  stone  hinges.  "We  found  several  of  these  tombs  occupied 
by  a  low,  despei-ate  class  of  natives,  recalling  the  visit  of  Christ 
to  this  neighborhood,  and  the  healing  of  the  demoniac  who 
came  out  of  the  tombs,  and  met  Jesus  as  he  landed  from  the 
^ship.'  This  miracle,  it  will  be  observed,  was  not  wrought  at 
Gadara,  but  "  in  the  country  of  the  Gadarenes,"  of  which  Gad- 
ara  was  the  capital,  or,  according  to  Strabo,  "  in  the  territory 
•of  Gadara,"  which  extended  to  the  Sea  of  Galilee. 

This  was  one  of  the  cities  of  the  Decapolis,  and  at  one  time 
the  capital  of  Peraea.  It  was  first  taken  by  Antiochus  the 
Great,  B.  C.  218,  afterward  rebuilt  by  Pompey,  and  again 
-captured  and  destroyed  by  Vespasian,  and  all  its  inhabitants 
put  to  the  sword.  Again  it  was  rebuilt,  and  became  the  seat 
of  an  episcopal  see,  but  never  recovered  from  its  conquest  by 
the  Mohammedans ;  and  all  that  remains  of  this  once  opulent 
city  is  a  confused  heap  of  ruins. 

The  old  stone  bridge  over  the  Jordan,  and  the  only  one  over 
that  river  now  passable,  and  the  same  very  likely  by  which 
Saul  crossed  on  his  way  to  Damascus,  is  a  little  south-west  of 
this,  and  in  tolerable  preservation. 

Among  the  rare  plants  indigenous  to  this  country  is  the  cele- 
brated shrub  or  tree  from  which  the  balm  of  Gilead  was  ex- 
tracted, once  the  great  specific  for  all  diseases  peculiar  to  the 
East.  It  is  an  aromatic  tree  with  long  slender  twigs  thickly 
■covered  with  sharp  thorns,  still  found  growing  about  Jericho, 
^nd  along  the  Jordan  in  Gilead,  commonly  known  as  the 
Arabian  Nubk,  or  Spina  Christa,  and  is  probably  the  tree 
from  which  the  Saviour's  crown  of  thorns  was  woven.  And 
may  not  Jeremiah  have  referred  to  the  crowning  of  our  Lord 
with  thorns,  and  to  the  blood  which  flowed  from  the  peerless 

»Mark  v,  1-21. 


BALM    OF    GILEAD. 


365 


"brow  of  Christ,  when  he,  in  the  bitterness  of  his  soul,  inquired, 
■*'  Is  there  no  balm  in  Gilead  ? "  * 

This  most  precious  gum  was  generally  obtained  bj  making 
an  incision  in  the  bark  of  the  shrub ;  it  also  oozed  from  the 
leaves,  and  hung  in  drops  like  honey  from  the  branches.  The 
tree,  wliich  originally  was  only  found  in  Palestine,  was  trans- 
planted to  Egypt  by  Cleopatra,  to  whom  the  groves  near  Jeri- 
cho were  presented  by  Marc  Antony.  The  plant  was  after- 
ward taken  to  Arabia  and  grown  in  the  vicinity  of  Mecca, 
whence  the  balsam  is  now  brought  to  Europe  and  America,  not 
•as  balm  from  Gilead,  but  balsam  from  Mecca. 

The  gardens  around  Heliopolis  and  the  Fountain  of  the  Sun, 
in  Egypt,  no  longer  produce  this  rare  specific  for  suffering  mor- 
tals, and  it  has  long  since  ceased  to  be  an  article  of  export  from 
•Gilead ;  but  the  more  precious  balm  it  typified  is  still  offered 
*^  without  money  and  without  price  "  to  a  dying  world. 

'  Jeremiah  riii,  22. 


CHAPTER  V. 

STONE  CITIES  OF  B  A  SHAN. 

Giant  Tribes  of  Men — Land  of  the  Giants — Present  Population — Patriarchal  Char- 
acter— Deserted  Cities — Adraha — Bozrah — Salcah. 

THESE  are  the  ruins  described  by  Mr.  Porter  as  the  Giant 
Cities  of  Bashan ;  but  whether  there  ever  was  a  race  of 
men  much  larger  than  the  present  remains  to  be  proven.  At 
a  very  early  period,  when  the  mode  of  living  was  more  simple, 
and  the  habits  of  the  people  more  hardy,  certain  tribes,  under 
favorable  circumstances,  may  have  attained  an  unusual  height 
and  extraordinary  strength  ;  still,  from  the  statements  of  the 
most  ancient  historians,  from  the  human  remains  found  in  the 
oldest  tombs,  and  from  the  dimensions  of  their  dwellings  and 
the  size  of  their  armor,  it  does  not  appear  that  the  early  in- 
habitants of  the  world  differed  materially  from  the  present  race. 
True,  the  Bible  makes  mention  of  the  fact  that  "  there  were 
giants  in  the  earth  in  those  days ;" '  but  we  are  only  to  under- 
stand from  this  that  they  were  wicked,  ferocious  men ;  men  of 
violence  and  blood ;  men  of  strong  animal  passions,  who  op- 
pressed and  plundered  the  weak  and  defenseless.  The  Hebrew 
word  fiephilimj  which  is  rendered  giant,  literally  signifies  earth- 
born  or  fallen;  men  of  depravity,  strong,  bull-necked,  muscular 
men,  of  which  "the  earth  was  full"  after  the  fall;  but  it  no- 
where represents  them  of  great  size,  such  as  the  term  giant  in 
modern  parlance  implies. 

The  Kephaim,  or  first  settlers  of  Bashan,  appear  to  have  been 

'  Grenesis  vi,  4. 
366 


GIAXT  RACES.  367 

of  this  cliaracter,  of  wliom  Og,  their  giant  king,  only  remained 
in  tlie  days  of  Moses.  That  there  were  men  of  gigantic  pro- 
portions in  every  age  of  the  world  none  will  deny,  as  we  occa- 
sionally meet  with  them  in  oar  own  day ;  and  it  would  seem 
that  in  primitive  times,  when  armies  fought  hand  to  hand, 
and  much  depended  on  great  phj-sical  strength,  these  semi- 
civilized  nations  selected  the  largest  men  for  their  leaders. 
Such  was  Og,  king  of  Bashan,  whose  iron  bedstead  was  nine 
cubits  long ; '  Saul,  first  king  of  Israel,  who  stood  head  and 
shoulders  above  his  brethren;  Goliah  of  G-ath,  whose  height 
was  "  six  cubits  and  a  span,*'  nine  feet  and  a  fraction ; '  Poms 
the  Indian  king,  who  was  five  cubits  in  height,  and  many  others 
we  might  name.  These,  however,  were  exceptions,  and  only 
prove  that  the  soldiers  composing  the  armies  they  led  to  battle 
were  no  larger  than  ordinary  men. 

The  "  land  of  Bashan  "  extended  from  the  "  border  of  Gilead  " 
on  the  south  to  Mount  Hermon  on  the  north ;  and  from  the 
Jordan  Yalley  on  the  west  to  Salcah  on  the  east,'  including 
that  portion  of  Palestine  east  of  the  Jordan,  called  "  the  land 
of  the  giants,"  which  fell  to  the  lot  of  the  half  tribe  of 
Manassch.* 

As  the  name  signifies,  it  was  a  fat  and  fruitful  country,  a 
liigh  plateau  of  rich  pasture-land,  densely  populated,  and  pro- 
verbial for  its  exuberant  fertility,  ever-green  forests,  and  su- 
perior breed  of  cattle.  "  The  oaks  of  Bashan  "  are  classed  by 
the  inspired  writers  with  the  cedars  of  Lebanon.  Her  "  rams, 
lambs,  and  goats  "  are  alluded  to  as  superior  to  all  other  fatlings,* 
and  the  "  bulls  of  Bashan "  have  always  been  celebrated  for 

*  Deuteronomy  iii,  11.  »  1  Samuel  xvii,  4 

*  Deuteronomy  iii,  3-14 ;  Joshua  xii,  3-5.  *  Deuteronomy  iii,  13. 

*  Ezekiel  xxxii.  18. 


368  BIBLE    LANDS. 

their  great  strength,  and  are  supposed  to  be  the  behemotlt 
mentioned  by  Job. 

This  country  is  first  noticed  in  connection  with  the  invasion 
of  Chedorlaoraer  and  his  confederates,  who  "  smote  the  Repliaim 
in  Ashtaroth  Karnaim,"  *  the  royal  city  "  of  Og,  king  of  Bashan, 
who  was  of  the  remnant  of  the  giants,  that  dwelt  at  Ash- 
taroth." *  The  land  was  anciently  divided  into  three  provinces  : 
Gaulanitis,  on  the  west ;  Argob  or  Trachonitis,  to  the  north ; 
and  Auranitis  or  Batanaea,  on  the  east.  It  is  now  generally- 
known  as  the  Hauran,  the  land  of  mountains  and  of  free- 
dom, so  called  from  Jebel  Hauran,  a  volcanic  mountain  that 
rises  from  the  great  plain  of  Moab,  six  thousand  four  hundred 
feet  above  the  sea.  "When  the  Israelites  invaded  Canaan,  they 
"  went  up  by  the  way  of  the  Bashan,"  probably  by  the  Haj  route 
east  of  the  Salt  Sea,  now  traveled  by  the  pilgrims  to  Mecca, 
and  after  conquering  the  nations  east  of  the  Jordan  crossed 
over  into  Western  Palestine. 

The  present  occupants  of  this  country  are  chiefly  the  wild,, 
nomadic  children  of  the  desert.  Most  of  these  Bedouin  tribes- 
are  lawless,  hereditary  robbers,  and  have  always  lived  by  pluii''cr- 
ing  all  who  came  within  their  reach.  Time  has  neither  changed 
their  character  nor  improved  their  condition.  You  will  find 
them  to-day  leading  the  same  predatory  life  they  did  a  thou- 
sand years  ago.  They  excuse  themselves  for  their  robberies  by 
the  treatment  received  by  their  father,  Ishmael,  who,  being 
turned  out  upon  the  world  without  patrimony,  was  allowed  to 
take  all  he  could  find,  and  collect  tribute  from  all  travelers 
passing  through  his  dominions. 

There  are,  however,  a  few  tribes  who  pride  themselves  on 
being  the  descendants  of  the  Patriarchs — are  given  to  hospi- 
'  Genesis  sir,  5.  '  Joshua  xii,  4. 


BEDOUIN  HOSPITALITY.  36^ 

talitj,  and  really  are  very  patriarchal  in  their  manners.  They 
treat  all  travelers  as  guests,  and  often  press  you  to  accept 
their  entertainment,  and  appear  oflEended  if  you  decline.  They 
have  coffee  and  milk  always  on  hand,  and  a  kid  or  fatted  calf 
always  ready  to  be  served,  with  provender  in  abundance  for 
your  horses  or  camels,  reminding  one  very  much  of  the  sim- 
plicity of  primitive  times. 

On  one  occasion,  as  we  approached  a  village,  the  Sheik  and 
chief  men  of  the  tribe  came  forth  to  meet  us,  and  after  the- 
usual  salutation  conducted  us  to  their  camp.  Rich  rugs  were 
spread  on  the  ground  where  we  were  to  sit,  and  soft  pillows 
given  us  to  recline  on,  after  which  we  were  served  with  bread, 
honey,  milk,  coffee,  and  every  other  delicacy  they  had,  the  chiefs 
joining  us  in  our  repast,  which  was  accompanied  by  singing, 
and  music  on  a  stringed  instrument  something  like  a  violin. 
They  pressed  ns  earnestly  to  stay  with  them  over  night,  and 
when  we  declined,  the  Sheik  appeared  disappointed,  and  said, 
"I  would  rather  bury  one  of  my  children  than  have  you  go." 
And  he  really  seemed  to  mean  it.  In  parting  he  gave  us  the 
customary  blessing,  and  refused  any  gift  for  himself  or  servants. 

The  men  generally  wear  the  aba,  girdle,  and  turban,  and 
the  women  a  dress  of  blue  cotton  cloth,  with  a  white  veil 
thrown  over  the  head,  the  latter  frequently  elevated  from  twelve 
to  fifteen  inches  above  the  head  by  a  silver  horn,  richly  chased, 
which  makes  them  look  very  tall  and  defiant.  Among  the 
wealthy,  and  on  special  occasions,  a  silk  fabric  is  worn. 

This  tantura^  or  horn,  denotes  wealth,  position,  and  power, 
and  is  interesting  as  illustrating  and  explaining  that  familiar 
expression  of  the  Psalmist,  "  My  horn  shalt  thou  exalt  like  the 
horn  of  a  unicorn."  '     The  females  all  tattoo  their  cheeks  and. 

'  Psalm  xcii,  10. 


S70  BIBLE  LANDS. 

■chin,  the  back  of  their  hands,  and  arms  up  to  the  elbow,  also 
the  top  of  their  feet  and  ankles.  Their  finger-nails  are  painted 
red  and  their  eyebrows  black,  giving  them  a  rather  hideous 
appearance. 

We  met  here  with  some  young  men  living  with  women  much 
older  than  themselves,  and  when  we  inquired  the  cause  were 
told  that  "  tlie  price  of  young  women  had  gone  up  fearfully  of 
late,  and  they  couldn't  aflford  to  marry  youthful  maidens." 
One  of  our  guides  was  a  married  man,  and  when  we  expressed 
a  desire  to  see  his  wife  he  replied  he  had  never  yet  seen  her 
himself,  and  then  went  on  to  explain  that  he  was  poor,  and  liad 
to  pay  for  her  in  labor  or  service,  and  that  she  would  remain 
with  her  father  until  he  "worked  her  out."  Among  these 
tribes  you  can  buy  a  camel,  horse,  or  piece  of  land  on  credit, 
but  not  a  beautiful  woman ;  for  all  such  articles  you  Iiave  to 
pay  the  cash  or  its  equivalent  on  delivery. 

Bashan  was  but  a  small  portion  of  trans- Jordanic  Palestine,, 
and  yet  contained  sixty  "fenced  cities,"  with  towering  walls 
and  gates  secured  with  "  brazen  bars."  Out  of  over  one  hun- 
dred places  mentioned  in  the  Scriptures  as  belonging  to  this 
region,  a  few  only  have  been  identified ;  of  most  of  them 
nothing  is  left  but  heaps  of  shapeless  ruins  without  either  name 
or  story.  Sometimes  a  solitary  column  will  be  found,  standing 
like  a  lone  sentinel  with  all  his  comrades  lying  at  his  feet,  guard- 
ing the  gate-way  to  some  long-deserted  city.  The  old  highways 
connecting  these  cities  may  still  be  traced  by  the  deeply  woi-n 
ruts  of  chariot  wheels  in  their  solid  beds,  though  no  wayfaring 
man  has  walked  therein  for  ages  ;  and  occasionally  a  bridge  may 
be  seen  spanning  some  stream^  or  a  mile-stone  marking  the  dis- 
tance to  some  unknown  place,  but  nothing  remains  by  which 
the  names  of  many  of  these  places  can  be  detei-mined. 


GIAJiT    CITIES. 


371 


In  a  few  of  these  cities  houses  may  be  found  perfect  as  the 
day  they  were  built.  They  are  constructed  entirely  of  stone, 
generally  of  black  basalt  hard  as  flint.  Kot  only  are  the  walls 
stone,  but  the  floors,  roofs,  doors,  even  the  window-shutters  and 


SCARFED    STONE    WALL. 


hinges.  No  mortar  was  used  in  the  construction  of  these  build- 
ings, but  the  stones  were  scarfed,  so  as  to  bind  them  firmly  to- 
gether. In  some  instances  the  doors  are  beautifully  paneled, 
with  moldings  running  round,  and 
ornamented  with  clusters  of  fruit 
and  flowers.  Some  of  the  houses 
consist  of  several  apartments  with 
folding  doors  communicating,  each 


door  a  single  slab  of  stone. 


The 


streets  are  paved  with  stone,  the 
court-yards  flagged  with  stone,  the 
gates  leading  to  them  are  stone, 
some  of  them  ten  feet  high  and 
eight  inches  thick,  with  stone  hinges, 
and  grooves  for  brazen  bolts.  In 
the  stables  all  the  stalls  and  man- 
gers are  stone,  and  from  the  charac- 
ter of  their  habitations,  one  would 
suppose  that  the  great  aim  of  the 
former  inhabitants  of  this  land  was 
to  fortify  themselves  against  their  enemies,  as  each  house  is 

a  fortification  of  itself.     The  cisterns,  baths,  and  aqueducts 
24 


STONE    DOOR. 


372  BIBLE  LANDS. 

whicli  supplied  them  are  all  hewn  in  the  solid  rock,  and  in 
some  of  them  water  may  still  be  found. 

Many  of  these  cities  belong  to  the  Greek  and  Roman  period  ; 
others,  however,  are  prehistoric,  and  carry  us  back  to  the  first 
settlements  made  by  man  after  the  flood.  Or,  probably,  they 
may  owe  their  origin  to  the  Geshurites,  that  powerful  race  of 
men  known  as  giants,  who  occupied  this  land  when  Israel  came 
up  out  of  Egypt.  And,  what  is  remarkable,  in  some  of  the 
oldest  buildings  materials  from  still  older  edifices  may  be  seen, 
indicating  a  remote  antiquity,  and  showing  that  portions  of 
these  structures  must  date  back  at  least  four  thousand  years. 

After  the  conquest  of  the  country  by  Alexander,  the  Grecian 
architecture  was  introduced ;  and  when  occupied  by  the  Ro- 
mans every  thing  was  remodeled  in  conformity  to  their  ideas  ; 
and  when  Christianity  became  the  established  religion  many  old 
pagan  temples  were  converted  into  Christian  churches.  So  we 
frequently  find  ancient  temples  of  Baal,  first  dedicated  to  some 
Greek  or  Roman  deity,  and  afterward  consecrated  to  the  wor- 
ship of  Christ.  Some  of  the  inscriptions  on  these  temples  are 
very  carious,  as  showing  the  religious  changes  that  have  taken 
place  during  the  last  two  thousand  years.  One  feels  very  sol- 
emn standing  in  these  ruined  clmrclies  amid  these  deserted 
cities,  gazing  upon  the  broken  columns  and  tottering  walls  of 
grand  edifices  that  once  resounded  with  the  high  praises  of 
Jehovah,  but  are  now  without  a  single  worshiper — all  silent  as 
the  grave.  Nothing  could  be  more  clear  than  the  fulfillment 
of  prophecy,  in  the  utter  overthrow  and  desolation  of  these 
once  famous  cities. 

Tlie  nations  which  anciently  held  this  country  having  either 
been  killed  in  battle  or  carried  away  captives  to  other  lands, 
their  cities  were  not  destroyed — only  deserted — and  their  houses, 


FIRST  EXPLORERS  OF  BASHAN.  878 

being  constructed  of  stone,  are  still  in  good  preservation.  The 
present  Arab  population  have  always  lived  in  tents ;  and  from 
superstitious  notions  avoid  these  cities  under  the  impression  that 
they  are  Iiaunted,  or  inhabited  by  evil  spirits,  so  that  many  of 
these  places  are  without  an  inhabitant.  Often,  in  a  day's  ride, 
you  will  pass  the  ruins  of  half-a-dozen  nameless  deserted  cities, 
built  by  an  unknown  people,  or  a  people  long  since  forgotten. 
Yet  we  know  they  were  of  our  race,  possessed  of  human  feel- 
ings and  affections,  and  in  every  otlier  respect  very  much  like 
ourselves ;  and,  after  the  lapse  of  ages,  from  their  dwellings 
we  can  see  how  they  lived  ;  from  their  temples,  how  they  wor- 
shiped ;  from  their  theaters,  how  they  amused  themselves  ;  and 
from  their  tombs,  how  they  died  and  were  buried ;  but  as  to 
their  history  we  know  nothing  more.  A  striking  fulfillment 
of  the  prophecy,  "  The  cities  tliereof  shall  be  desolate,  without 
any  to  dwell  therein."  ' 

The  first  European  to  visit  this  unexplored  region  was  Burck- 
hardt,  in  1814.  Since  then  a  few  other  travelers  have  passed 
hastily  through  it,  among  them  the  Rev.  J.  L.  Porter,  who,  in 
his  "  Giant  Cities  of  Bashan,"  has  furnished  us  with  much 
valuable  information  touching  this  country.  Still  later,  the 
American  Palestine  Exploration  Society  sent  out  two  exploring 
parties,  but,  owing  to  the  lack  of  funds  and  the  unsettled  con- 
dition of  the  land,  tliey  failed  in  accomplishing  their  work. 

To  describe  at  length  these  remarkable  remains  of  a  former 
civilization,  so  replete  with  interest  to  science  and  religion,  would 
require  us  to  go  beyond  the  limits  of  this  volume.  We  shall, 
therefore,  only  give  a  brief  sketch  of  some  of  the  most  inter- 
esting ruins  visited  in  our  late  trip  tlirough  the  Hauran. 

Leaving  Gadai-a  when  the  sun,  as  the  Arabs  express  it,  was 

'  Jeremiah  xlviii,  9. 


374  •  BIBLE   LANDS. 

about  "  six  lances  liigh,"  we  continued  up  the  valley  of  the 
Hieroniax,  or  Yarmuk,  and  over  Jebel  Ajliin,  by  the  old  cities 
of  Abila  and  Capitolias,  to  Adraha,  supposed  by  some  to  be 
Edrei,  the  ancient  capital  of  Bashan.  There  is  nothing  here, 
however,  to  indicate  royalty,  or  that  it  was  ever  a  place  of  great 
strength.  The  city  is  literally  buried  beneath  the  filth  of  ages. 
The  only  ruin  of  any  extent  is  an  old  Christian  church,  opening 
on  a  court  surrounded  by  cloisters,  in  one  of  which  we  found 
an  empty  basaltic  sarcophagus,  ornamented  with  lions'  heads. 
It  is  said  there  is  a  subterranean  city  beneath  the  more  modern, 
and  we  looked  long  for  it  and  inquired  diligently  of  the 
natives,  but  could  learn  nothing.  As  the  place  is  entirely 
destitute  of  living  water,  the  probability  is  the  numerous  cis- 
tei'ns  below  gave  rise  to  the  report ;  and  during  a  state  of  siege 
the  citizens  would  very  naturally  take  refuge  in  these  cisterns, 
which  M'ould  explain  the  statement  that  when  the  Romans  oc- 
cupied the  place  and  attempted  to  draw  water  "  their  buckets 
were  always  cut  from  the  ropes  by  some  malignant  spirit." 

From  Adraha  to  Bozrah  we  followed  the  old  Roman  road, 
crossing  the  Zeidy  on  an  ancient  stone  bridge,  and  traveling 
most  of  the  distance  through  one  continuous  grain-,field.  We 
were  ten  hours  making  the  journey,  and  it  was  after  night  be- 
fore we  reached  our  tents,  which  were  pitched  near  the  spring 
a  little  north-west  of  the  city.  It  being  quite  dark,  and  we 
compelled  to  pick  our  steps  over  heaps  of  rubbish,  I  became 
separated  from  our  party  just  outside  the  gate,  and  soon  found 
I  was  lost !  lost  amid  the  interminable  rnins  of  a  deserted  city. 
My  first  impulse  was  to  ride  round  the  city  until  I  came  to  our 
camp,  but  very  soon  discovered  it  was  no  easy  matter  to  ride 
five  or  six  miles  over  broken  walls  in  the  darkness  of  the  night. 
I  next  tried  to  find  my  way  through  the  city,  but  the  streets 


BOZKAH.  375 

were  so  blocked  up  witli  ruins  as  to  render  the  task  impossible. 
My  great  fear  was,  of  falling  in  with  the  desperate  robbers  who 
frequently  infest  these  abandoned  cities.  Finally  I  made  for 
the  citadel,  and  fortunately  met  there  a  Turkish  soldier  who 
conducted  nie  safely  to  our  tents. 

Bozrah,  once  the  Roman  capital  of  Bashan  and  the  Ilauran, 
is  situated  on  the  plain  of  Moab,  which  is  here,  perhaps,  fifty 
miles  wide  from  east  to  west,  and,  with  the  exception  of  some 
sandy  ridges,  is  of  unusual  richness  and  fertility.  The  Castle 
of  Bozrah,  with  its  deep  fosse  and  massive  square  towers,  is  a 
citadel  of  great  strength,  and  commands  a  view  of  the  surround- 
ing country  for  many  miles.  The  outer  walls  are  almost  per- 
fect, and  within,  besides  the  numerous  courts,  halls,  and  gal- 
leries of  a  great  fortress,  there  are  the  remains  of  a  grand  am- 
phitheater nearly  three  hundred  feet  across  the  arena,  with  a 
Doric  colonnade  running  around  the  upper  tier  of  seats,  and  two 
large  royal  apartments  of  the  same  order,  on  either  side  of  the 
stage.  Underneath  the  theater  are  extensive  vaults  and  dun- 
geons where  the  wild  beasts  were  kept,  similar  to  those  under 
the  Colosseum  at  Rome,  only  deeper  and  larger.  In  one  of 
these  vaults  there  was  standing  a  white  marble  column,  beauti- 
fully polished,  that  glittered  like  alabaster  in  the  light  of  our 
tapers,  probably  the  first  light  to  flash  upon  it  in  many  centuries. 
Some  of  the  passage-ways  were  covered  overhead  with  col- 
umns laid  crosswise,  and  the  arches  were  most  unique  in  their 
construction,  clearly  indicating  the  work  of  different  ages,  and 
great  antiquity.  Many  of  these  underground  apartments  are 
almost  closed  with  rubV>i8h,  and  as  T  groped  my  way  from  dun- 
geon to  dungeon,  the  gloom  and  silence,  together  with  the  vast- 
ness  and  massiveness  of  the  work,  impressed  me  as  no  other 
ruin  had  ever  done  before.     The  city  must  have  contained  a 


87^  BIBLE   LANDS. 

population  of  at  least  one  hundred  thousand,  and  the  whole 
plain  for  many  miles  around  is  dotted  with  the  black  remains 
of  other  cities  and  villages,  presenting  a  picture  of  desolation 
rarely  met  with. 

Little  is  known  of  the  early  history  of  Bozrah.  Jeremiah 
iirst  mentions  it  among  the  cities  of  "the  plain  country  in  the 
land  of  Moab,"  '  but  it  must  have  been  a  flourishing  city,  given 
up  to  wickedness,  long  before  Jeremiah  denounced  against  it 
the  judgments  of  God.  It  is  next  mentioned  in  the  Talmud, 
and  by  Josephus.*  When  the  Romans  conquered  the  country 
it  was  greatly  enlarged,  and  by  Trajan  made  the  capital  of 
Arabia.  And  the  Eujperor  Philip,  who  was  a  native  of  Bashan, 
conferred  still  greater  honors  upon  the  place  by  making  it  the 
metropolip  of  his  eastern  kingdom.  Earlj'  in  the  Christian 
era  it  became  the  seat  of  a  bishopric,  and  afterward  of  an  arch- 
bishopric, with  thirty-three  dioceses,  and  in  time  the  center  of 
Nestorian  power  and  controversy.  Being  a  frontier  city,  it 
was  among  the  flrst  to  fall  before  the  Moslem  invaders,  and 
from  that  moment  began  to  decline,  until  now  nothing  remains 
but  heaps  of  broken  columns  and  tottering  walls,  to  mark  the 
site  of  this  once  renowned  Roman  metropolis. 

Rummaging  among  the  ruins,  we  found  many  inscriptions  in 
Greek,  Latin,  Cutic,  and  Nabathean  characters,  generally  giving 
the  name  and  builder  of  the  edifice.  On  the  square  base  of  a 
column  half  buried  in  the  ground  close  by  our  encampment, 
probably  the  remains  of  some  bath  or  temple,  we  found  a  bold 
Latin  inscription  stating  that  the  building  was  dedicated  to 
"Antonia  Fortunata,  the  devoted  wife  of  Antonius  Csesar." 
There  are  many  sermons  written  on  these  broken  pillars  and 
crumbling  walls.     You  can  sit  for  a  whole  day  in  an  old  temple 

'  Jeremiali  xlviii,  24.  *  Antiqn  lies,  xii,  8. 


CITADEL  OF   BOZRAH.  377 

musing  over  the  past,  and  living  through  two  or  three  thou- 
sand years  in  an  hour. 

Here  are  Cliristian  churches,  some  of  them  probably  planted 
by  Paul  when  he  first  preached  in  Arabia,'  once  crowded  with 
worshipers,  but  now  empty  and  quiet  as  the  grave;  grand  tem- 
ples dedicated  to  different  pagan  divinities,  entirely  deserted, 
without  priest  or  devotee ;  triumphal  arches,  erected  in  honor 
of  men  unknown  in  history,  tottering  with  age,  and  ready  to 
fall ;  beautiful  tombs,  reared  to  the  memory  of  persons  long 
since  forgotten ;  palaces,  theaters,  and  other  public  edifices 
unoccupied  for  centuries,  and  yet,  in  their  decay,  beautiful  to 
behold. 

Many  of  the  columns  that  lie  around  on  every  hand  are  evi- 
dently of  greater  antiquity  than  the  buildings  in  which  they 
are  found.  Some  of  them  are  marble,  a  few  porphyry.  On  one 
of  the  latter,  standing  in  an  old  mosque,  is  the  singular  Greek 
inscription,  "  In  the  name  of  Christ  our  Saviour."  On  others 
you  will  find,  perhaps,  the  name  of  some  heathen  deity,  and 
wherever  you  stroll  you  meet  with  these  inscriptions  and 
sculptured  stones,  reminding  one  of  the  desolation  of  Pompeii, 
Truly,  "  Judgment  is  come  upon  Bozrah,  and  upon  all  the  cities 
of  the  land  of  Moab,  far  and  near," '  East  of  the  city,  near 
the  mosque  of  Caliph  Othman,  is  an  immense  reservoir,  of 
beautiful  workmanship,  five  hundred  and  thirty  feet  long,  and 
four  hundred  and  twenty  wide,  supplied  by  aqueducts  from 
distant  mountain  springs ;  and  another,  near  the  citadel,  al- 
most as  large,  designed  to  flood  the  fosse  when  necessary,  both 
in  good  condition,  and  still  full  of  water. 

The  great  mosque,  said  to  have  been  erected  by  Caliph  Omar, 
contains,  among  many  others  in  marble  and  granite,  seventeen 

'  Galatia»3  i,  17.  *  Jeremiah  xlviii,  21-'i4. 


378 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


porphyry  monolith  columns  of  the  Corinthian  order,  probably 
taken  from  the  Cathedral  of  Bozrah,  or  some  older  pagan  tem- 
ple. The  church  of  the  Nestorian  monk,  Boheira,  who,  it  is 
said,  assisted  Mohammed  in  writing  the  Koran,  is  a  grand  old 
edifice,  square  without  and  circular  within,  very  much  like  Dr. 
Hall's  fine  church  in  New  York.  From  a  Greek  inscription 
over  the  entrance,  it  appears  to  have  been  originally  a  Christian 
church  erected  by  Julianus,  Archbishop  of  Bozrah,  A.  D.  513, 


in  honor  of  the  blessed  martyrs  Sergius,  Bacehus,  and  Leon- 
tius.     How  sad  to  contemplate  such  ruins ! 

Near  the  center  of  the  city  four  tall  Corinthian  pillars,  with 
their  capitals,  are  all  that  remain  standing  of  an  imposing  tem- 
ple that  once  stood  upon  this  spot.  Some  ruins  east  of  the  Cas- 
tle are  interesting  on  account  of  their  ponderous  stone  doors, 
several  being  at  least  ten  feet  high,  and  eleven  inches  thick,  still 
swinging  on  their  stone  pivot  hinges.     The  western  gate — Bab 


SALCAH.  379 

el  Hawa — "  Gate  of  the  Winds,"  is  a  line  specimen  of  Roman 
architecture.  Nothing  could  be  more  graceful  than  the  arches 
which  span  the  roadway,  the  pavement  of  which  is  still  un- 
broken. Five  minutes'  walk  directly  west  of  this  is  a  round 
tower  eighteen  feet  in  diameter,  standing  on  a  square  base,  per- 
liaps  a  tomb  or  watch-tower,  and  very  beautiful.  The  stone 
has  the  ring  and  appearance  of  metal,  and  is  about  as  hard,  yet 
of  the  finest  workmanship. 

Salcal],  the  eastern  border  of  Og's  kingdom,'  though  six 
hours  distant,  can  be  distinctly  seen  from  Bozrah,  and  the  road 
leading  tliereto  is  as  straight  as  an  arrow.  About  lialf  a  mile 
east  of  Bozrah  we  passed  a  little  stone  mosque  with  stone  door 
and  tracery  windows,  said  to  mark  the  place  where  Moham- 
med's camel  stopped  when  the  Prophet  first  came  to  Bozrah. 
We  followed  the  Roman  road  most  of  the  way,  over  a  rich 
plain  covered  with  small,  irregular  blocks  of  basalt,  but  yielding 
abundant  crops  of  grain.  The  Citadel  of  Salcah  is  built  in  the 
crater  of  an  extinct  volcano  that  rises  about  five  hundred  feet 
above  the  plain,  and  very  difficult  to  ascend,  owing  to  the  lava 
and  cinders  that  cover  its  slopes.  The  walls  of  the  castle  are 
massive,  and  of  great  height.  Outside  of  them  are  two  moats, 
one  about  two  hundred  feet  below  the  other,  rendering  the  po- 
sition one  of  great  strength.  The  interior  is  a  labyrinth  of 
dark  vaults,  narrow  passages,  and  spacious  halls :  in  one  of  the 
latter  we  saw  a  beautiful  rose-window  in  stone  tracery.  Many 
curious  sculptures  of  lions,  palm-trees,  eagles,  and  human  busts 
adorn  the  walls,  but  no  inscriptions  throwing  light  on  its  early 
history.  And  yet,  from  the  large  beveled  blocks  and  other 
old  material  that  may  be  seen  every-where  in  the  more  modern 
portion  of  the  fortress,  there  must  have  been  a  citadel  here  be- 

'  Deuteronomy  iii,  10. 


380  BIBLE    LANDS. 

fore  the  Roman  Conquest,  and  perhaps  as  early  as  the  invasion 
of  Bashan  by  Moses.  No  view  could  be  more  extensive  than 
that  from  the  towers  of  this  "castle  in  the  air."  On  the 
north  and  west  may  be  seen  Hermon,  Ajliin,  and  the  mountains 
of  the  Hauran ;  to  the  south,  the  plain  of  Moab,  covered  with 
desolate  cities  far  as  the  eye  can  reach ;  and  to  the  east,  the 
vast  desert  of  Arabia  dotted  with  tells,  stretching  away  to  the 
great  river — the  river  Euphrates. 

One  hour  east  of  Salcah,  on  the  bosom  of  the  plain,  is 
Orman,  the  birthplace  of  Philip  the  Arabian,  and  where  he 
was  crowned  Emperor  of  Rome.  The  country  east  and  south 
of  this  appears  one  great  plain,  with  tells  or  conical  hills  rising 
lip  here  and  there  like  islands  in  the  sea,  many  of  them  the 
craters  of  extinct  volcanoes.  These  tells  are  generally  connected 
by  low,  sandy  ridges,  the  depressions  between  them  affording 
ricli  pasturage  for  the  flocks  and  herds  of  the  Bedouins.  We 
met  here  with  several  Arabs  trading  with  the  tribes  of  this 
great  desert,  and  they  represented  the  country  as  rich  and  pop- 
ulous. One  of  them  had  brought  in,  a  few  days  before,  a 
thousand  camels  for  the  Damascus  market,  and  was  pasturing 
them  near  Salcah.  We  also  met  with  Zadam,  the  intelligent 
Sheik  of  the  Beni-Sackka  tribe,  who  told  me  of  a  depression 
like  the  Jordan  Yalley,  about  four  days'  journey  east  of  Zurka 
Main,  and  extending  far  down  into  Arabia.  He  called  it 
Wady  el  Azrak — the  blue  valley — and  said  his  tribe  usually 
wintered  in  it,  as  they  found  there  plenty  of  water,  good  pas- 
turage, and  many  date-bearing  palm-trees.  He  further  said 
there  was  a  lake  of  pure,  sweet  water  in  this  oasis,  and  on  its 
shore  an  old  castle,  with  but  one  double  stone  door,  large  enough 
to  admit  a  camel,  with  inscriptions  in  an  unknown  language 
on  the  lintel  and  down  the  door- jambs.     As  this  tribe  occupy 


GREAT  DESERT  OF  ARABIA.  381 

Southern  Moab,  I  took  occasion  to  ask  him  if  he  ever  saw  any 
of  the  Moabite  potterj.  He  at  once  described  several  pieces 
he  had  found — two  jare  with  inscriptions  running  round  them, 
and  many  smaller  vessels  and  images.  He  also  spoke  of  a  slab 
of  basalt  with  the  image  of  a  man  in  bass-relief,  about  six  feet 
high,  with  hands  clasped  in  front,  and  the  head  resting  on  one 
shoulder,  bearing  an  inscription  of  four  lines  across  the  base, 
which,  of  course,  he  could  not  read.  When  I  inquired  what 
became  of  this  slab,  he  replied,  "  We  buried  it." 

After  enjoying  the  hospitality  of  the  Sheik  of  Salcah,  who 
had  prepared  a  sumptuous  feast  for  us,  and  calling  to  examine 
some  folding  stone  doors  in  the  lower  part  of  the  village,  we 
turned  our  faces  toward  Bozrah  ;  returning  via  Kerioth,  one  of 
the  oldest,  and  at  one  time  among  the  largest,  cities  of  Bashan. 
You  will  find  it  mentioned  in  the  judgments  denounced  against 
the  cities  of  Moab  by  Jeremiah  and  Amos.'  There  are  some 
very  old  houses  and  square  towers  here,  with  heavy  walls  and 
stone  doors.  One,  in  which  we  took  shelter  from  a  rain-stoi-m, 
was  ornamented  with  the  vine  and  clusters  of  grapes,  clearly 
indicating  that  it  belonged  to  the  Jewish  period.  Othei"s  ap- 
pear still  older,  and  many  evidently  date  back  to  the  Repiiaim, 
who  first  settled  this  land.  During  our  stay  here  a  number  of 
children  gathered  about  us,  and  a  large  boy  for  some  cause 
struck  one  of  them  on  the  head,  and  the  little  fellow  began  to 
cry  most  piteously.  To  pacify  him,  I  gave  him  a  piaster;  when 
instantly  the  big  boy,  without  any  provocation,  began  rapping 
them  all  over  the  head,  raising  a  terrible  howl.  All  which  was 
for  backsheesh. 

'  Jeremiah  xlviii,  21  ;  Amos  ii,  2. 


CHAPTEK  VI. 


THE     LAND     OF     UZ. 


Siiweideh — Ancient  Tombs — Kynawat — Tlie  Kenath  of  the  Bible — Interestinjf 
Monuments — Strong  Tower — Serai  of  Job— Laud  of  Uz — Probable  Scenes  of 
Job's  Fiery  Trial — Book  of  Job. 

AFTEK  spending  three  memorable  days  in  and  around  Boz- 
i-ali,  we  started  early  on  Tuesday  morning,  May  2d,  for 
Kiinawato  Our  ride  most  of  the  way  was  through  waving 
grain-fields,  almost  ripe  for  the  harvest.  About  nine  o'clock 
we  passed  the  village  of  Ary,  on  a  tell  in  the  midst  of  rich 
downs,  at  the  base  of  Jebel  Hauran,  and  at  noon  were  hinching 
under  the  shade  of  a  plane-tree  in  an  old  Christian  church,  just 
without  the  walls  of  Suweideh,  the  present  capital  of  the  Hauran. 

This  city  was  beautifully  situated  on  a  low  spur  of  tlie  Hau- 
rdn  mountains,  and  must  have  been  a  place  of  considerable  im- 
portance ;  but  not  a  temple,  palace,  or  house  remains  entire — all 
ruin  and  desolation — the  present  sparse  population  living  in  the 
cellars  or  lower  stories  of  the  grand  edifices  that  once  crowned 
the  ridge.  And,  what  is  singular,  nothing  is  known  of  tlie  history 
of  this  place  prior  to  the  Roman  Conquest,  A.  D.  105,  though 
there  is  every  reason  for  believing  that  the  founding  of  this 
city  dates  much  further  back,  as  the  buildings  of  that  period 
look  like  patch-work,  being  all  constructed  of  older  materials. 

Suweideh  appears  to  have  been  a  commercial  city,  and  to 

have  had  her  "merchant  princes,"  who  have  left  behind  them, 

in  two  temples,   monuments  of   their  wealth  and    liberalit}'^, 

thougli  their  own  names,  with  the  ancient  name  of  their  city^ 
382 


SUWEIDEH.  383 

are  forgotten.  From  a  Greek  inscription  on  one  of  these  tem- 
ples, now  used  as  a  mosque,  we  learn  that  it  was  erected  by 
the  "  Bitaiena  Company,"  in  the  eleventh  year  of  Aurelins, 
A.  D.  171;  and  the  other  by  the  "Alexandrian  Firm,"  dur- 
ing the  reign  of  the  apostate  Emperor  Julian.  But  to  me 
one  of  the  most  interesting  monuments  here  is  a  Doric  tomb, 
about  tliirty  feet  square  and  forty  high,  standing  on  the  ridge 
to  the  north  of  the  city.  The  sides  are  ornamented  with 
twenty-four  Doric  columns,  between  which  are  armorial  de- 
signs in  bass-relief,  very  bold,  and  on  the  north  and  east  faces 
two  inscriptions,  one  in  Greek,  the  other  in  Palmyrene,  stating 
that  "  Odainathos,  son  of  Annelos,  built  this  monument  in  honor 
of  liis  loving  wife  Chamrate."  Nothing  more.  How  touch- 
ingly  beautiful  this  memorial  of  a  husband's  affections?  Mr. 
Porter  suggests  that  this  Odainathos  may  have  been  the  hus- 
band of  the  celebrated  queen  Zenobia.  On  anotlier  tomb  is 
recorded  the  virtues  of  a  lady  by  the  name  of  Flavia,  who  died 
A.  D.  135  ;  but  who  tliis  beautiful  character  was  will  never  be 
known  until  the  records  of  time  are  unrolled. 

Two  hours'  ride  from  Suweideh,  over  rocks  and  up  among 
the  mountain  spurs  covered  with  evergreen  oaks,  brought  us  to 
Kunawat,  the  Kenath  of  the  Bible,  and  one  of  the  "threescore 
cities  "  of  Argob  captured  by  Nobah,  of  the  tribe  of  Manasseh, 
more  than  three  thousand  years  ago,'  We  found  our  tents  pitched 
a  few  minutes'  walk  west  of  the  city,  near  the  ruins  of  a  beau- 
tiful periptery  temple  dedicated  to  some  unknown  god,  which 
stood  in  an  open  court,  on  an  elevated  platform,  with  a  portico 
on  its  eastern  front  originally  supported  by  twelve  Corinthian 
pillars  in  two  rows.  The  columns  rested  on  square  pedestals 
about  six  feet  high,  on  all  of  which  there  were  inscriptions,  no 
'  Numbers  xxxii,  42. 


384  BIBLE  LANDS. 

longer  legible.  Only  seven  of  these  columns  are  standing;  the 
others,  with  many  beautiful  sculptured  stones,  lie  in  confused 
heaps  about  the  court.  Strolling  in  any  direction,  you  will 
find  beneath  your  feet,  half  buried  in  the  earth,  broken  statues, 
inscribed  blocks,  and  other  remains  of  architectural  grandeur, 
presenting  a  sad  picture  of  utter  desolation.  The  principal 
ruins  of  Kenath  extend  for  about  a  mile  along  both  sides  of  a 
ravine,  through  which  flows  a  mountain  stream,  supplying  the 
place  with  an  abundance  of  good  water.  In  this  valley,  above 
the  bridge  and  east  of  the  stream,  is  the  theater,  built  against 
a  rocky  cliff  in  which  the  seats  are  excavated,  with  a  fountain 
in  the  center  of  the  orchestra.  Next  comes  a  small  temple  or 
bath,  and  just  above  it,  on  the  hill,  a  fort  or  castle  built  of  large 
beveled  stones,  apparently  of  Phoenician  workmanship.  The 
stone  doors  of  this  building  are  tastefully  paneled  and  em- 
bossed, with  a  groove  on  the  inside  for  the  bolt  to  slide  in, 
which,  by  a  simple  but  secure  arrangement,  could  also  be 
opened  from  without.  May  not  these  bolts  be  the  "  brazen 
bars  "  referred  to  in  the  Scriptures  ? ' 

A  few  rods  from  this  fortress  is  one  of  the  many  round 
towers  every-where  to  be  seen  in  this  region.  They  are  from 
thirty  to  forty  feet  in  diameter  and  about  fifty  high — some 
round  without  and  square  within,  with  stone  doors  barely  large 
enough  to  admit  one  person  at  a  time,  and  very  thick  walls. 
They  bear  the  marks  of  great  age,  and  were,  no  doubt,  con- 
structed for  the  protection  of  the  herdsmen  and  shepherds  from 
the  Bedouins  of  the  desert,  and  are  the  "strong  towers"  so 
often  alluded  to  in  the  Scriptures,  and  to  which  David  refers 
when  he  says,  "  The  Lord  is  my  rock  and  my  fortress,  and  a 
strong  tower  from  the  enemy."  * 

•  1  Kings  iv,  13.  -*  Psalms  xviii,  2;  Ixi,  3. 


KUNAWAT. 


385 


But  the  most  interesting  ruin  in  Kunawat  is  a  group  of 
buildings  on  the  ridge  in  the  heart  of  the  city,  known  as  the 
"  Serai,"  or  •'  Palace,  of  Job." 

Three  large  buildings  of  different  periods,  in  good  preserva- 
tion, are  still  standing.  They  have  been  remodeled  and  used 
as  Christian  Churches  or  convents,  but  evidently  belong  to  a 
much  earlier  period.  The  door  casings  are  elaborately  orna- 
mented with  vines  and  clusters  of  grapes,  and  the  friezes  with 
grotesque  satyrs  in  wreaths  of  flowers  and  fruit.     Some  of  the 


BEAD  OF  BAAL  ON  AN  ALTAR  AT  KUNAWAT. 


pillars  are  entirely  plain,  with  square  capitals ;  others  Corinthian  ; 
and  others,  again,  Palmyrene,  with  brackets  for  statues.  The 
large  court  in  front  is  nicely  paved  with  dressed  stones,  and  be- 
neath it  are  numerous  cisterns  for  water,  and  vaults  for  storing 
grain,  or,  it  may  be,  sepulchers  for  the  dead.  There  is  such  a 
collection  of  halls,  galleries,  and  coi-ridors,  colonnades,  porticoes, 
and  sculpture,  half  buried  in  heaps  of  rubbish,  and  so  overrun 
with  brambles,  hawthorn,  and  dwarf  oaks,  as  to  render  it  next 


886  BIBLE   LANDS. 

to  impossible  to  make  any  thing  out  of  tliis  remarkable  rnin, 
A  Greek  inscription  on  the  base  of  a  column,  in  raised  letters, 
states  that  the  temple  to  which  it  belonged  was  dedicated  to 
"  the  great  god,"  but  who  that  god  was  we  are  left  to  con- 
jecture. From  a  colossal  head  of  Baal  found  near  this,  it 
would  appear  Baal  was  that  deity.  Some  of  the  largest  and 
most  beautiful  stone  doors  are  liere,  still  swinging  on  their 
stone  pivot-hinges  which  work  in  corresponding  sockets  in 
the  door-sill  and  lintel ;  and  many  other  remains  equally  inter- 
esting. One  ruin  is  supposed  to  be  a  temple  of  Ashtaroth,  the 
Astarte  of  the  Greeks,  from  an  image  of  that  goddess  found 
near  it.  And  another  building,  known  as  the  Hippodrome, 
presents  nothing  but  a  confused  heap  of  broken  columns  and 
statues,  fragments  of  sculptured  animals  and  inscribed  blocks, 
perfectly  bewildering  to  behold. 

Eusebius  and  Pliny  both  mention  this  place  nnder  its  Greek 
name,  Canatha,  and  describe  it  as  an  "  important  town  in  Arabia, 
captured  by  Nobah,  and  belonging  to  the  tribe  of  Manasseh, 
and  situated  in  the  province  of  Trachonitis,  near  Bostra ;" 
thus  establishing  the  identity  of  Argob  and  Trachonitis.  We 
have  here  direct  proof  that  Kunawat  is  the  Kenatli  of  the 
Bible  and  the  Canatha  of  the  Greeks,  and  one  of  the  giant 
cities  taken  by  Nobali  in  the  conquest  of  Argob.* 

How  difficult  it  is  to  grasp  at  once  the  events  of  three  thou- 
sand years !  or  to  realize,  when  wandering  through  the  streets 
of  this  city,  that  the  ruined  buildings  over  which  we  clamber 
were  erected  before  Christ  was  born,  before  Rome  was  founded, 
even  before  the  children  of  Israel  came  up  out  of  Egypt ;  that 
this  is  the  land  in  which  "  the'  giants  dwelt  in  old  time ;" 
and  that  perhaps  some  of  the  niins  over  which  we  have  been 

'  Numbers  xxxii,  42. 


LAND   OF   UZ.  389 

climbing  were  reared  by  that  powerful  race  of  men  ;  that 
these  cities  of  Bashan  are  among  the  oldest  works  of  man,  and 
were  standing  before  Abram  left  his  native  land,  and  before 
the  patriarch  Job  endured  his  liery  trial. 

But  that  which  staggers  our  faith  more  than  all  this  is  to 
believe  the  tradition,  now  almost  an  established  fact,  that  the 
Hauran  is  "  the  land  of  Uz  ; "  that  Job  was  one  of  the  first 
princes  of  this  country  ;  that  this  city  of  Kenath  was  his  home  ; 
and  that  the  "  Serai,"  or  palace,  that  still  bears  his  name  marks 
the  site  of  his  severe  trial  and  glorious  triumph. 

There  has  been  much  discussion  as  to  the  locality  of  the 
country  where  Job  resided.  The  name,  doubtless,  was  derived 
from  Uz,  the  grandson  of  Shem,'  who  is  said  to  have  founded 
Damascus  and  Trachonitis,"  and  probably  lived  in  this  neigh-. 
borhood,  giving  his  name  to  the  district  where  he  resided. 
The  country,  being  exposed  to  the  incursions  of  the  Chaldeans 
and  Sabeans,  must  have  been  a  frontier  province  to  the  north- 
east of  Palestine.  It  could  not  have  been  as  far  south  as  Edom, 
for  "  the  daughter  of  Edom  "  was  in  exile  when  dwelling  in 
the  land  of  Uz.'  And  the  Edomite  Uz  is  not  to  be  confounded 
with  the  grandson  of  Shem,  the  Edomite  being  a  descendant 
of  the  Horites,  who  removed  from  their  own  country  and  set- 
tled in  "  the  land  of  Uz."  Some  locate  the  home  of  Job  in 
Mesopotamia,  near  the  Euphrates.  But  if  Aram  and  Syria  are 
identical,  which  none  will  deny ;  and  if  Padan-Aram,  as  we 
think  can  be  shown,  was  in  Syria  round  about  Damascus,  and 
sometimes  called  Aram  Damascus ;  *  and  if  the  land  of  Uz  de- 
rived its  name  from  the  son  of  Aram  and  lay  to  the  north-east 
of  Israel,  in  Aram,  or  between   Aram  and  Edom,  as  is  more 

*  Genesis  x,  23.  '  Josephus,  Antiquities,  i,  6. 

'  Lamentations  iv,  21.  *  2  Samuel  viii,  5. 


390  BIBLE    LANDS. 

than  probable ;  then,  no  conntiy  can  so  fully  meet  all  the  con- 
ditions and  facts  in  the  life  and  writings  of  this  remarkable 
man  as  the  Hauran.  So  there  is  some  ground  for  the  tradition 
that  locates  Uz  in  Aram,  and  the  residence  of  Job  at  Kunawat. 

This  locality  is  not  only  the  traditionary  but  historic  Uz. 
Chrysostom  speaks  of  many  people,  during  the  first  centuries 
of  our  era,  making  pilgrimages  to  the  Hauran  to  see  the  spot 
"  where  the  patient  patriarch  sat  and  scraped  himself  Mitli  a 
potsherd."  Wetstein.  Delitzsch,  and  other  eminent  biblical 
scholars  were  of  the  opinion  that  Job  was  a  native  of  the 
Hauran.  It  also  accords  with  the  general  belief  that  the 
buffalo,  or  "  strong  bull  of  Bashan,"  was  the  behemoth  of  Job. 
And  the  customs,  productions,  and  topography  of  the  country, 
.and  the  high  degree  of  civilization  described  in  the  Book  of 
Job,  agree  better  with  this  locality  than  with  any  other  in  the 
East. 

In  a  note  appended  to  the  Book  of  Job  in  the  Septuagint 
version,  it  is  stated,  "  That  the  translation  was  made  out  of  a 
Syriac  book,  and  that  Job  dwelt  in  the  land  of  Ausitis,  on  the 
confines  of  Idumea."  Now  we  know  that  the  Herodian  family 
was  of  Idumean  origin,  and,  if  their  country  did  not  extend 
so  far  north  as  the  Hauran,  that  Bashan  was  given  to  Herod 
the  Great  by  Augustus  Caesar,  that  it  was  also  part  of  Philip's 
tetrarchy,'  and  that  it  was  afterward  given  b}'  Caligula  to 
Herod  Agrippa,  and  after  Caligula's  death  conveyed  by 
Claudius  to  Agrippa  11."  And  it  is  a  singular  coincidence 
that  among  the  ruins  of  a  temple  at  Sia,  near  Kenath,  very 
similar  to  the  temple  of  Solomon,  were  found  a  statue  of 
Herod  the  Great,  and  an  inscription  containing  the  names  of 
the  two  Herod  Agrippas. 

•  Josephus,  War,  ii,  6 ;  Antiquities,  xviii,  4.  *  Antiquities,  xx,  7. 


GEOGRAPHICAL  LOCATIOX.  891 

CTz,  the  eldest  son  of  Nahor,  probably  lived  in  the  country 
that  bore  liis  name.  He  was  the  brother  of  Buz,  and  it  will  be 
remembered  that  Elihu,  the  young  friend  of  Job,  was  a  '•  Buzite, 
of  tlie  kindred  of  Aram,"  '  showing  that  the  land  of  Uz  was  in 
close  proximity  to  Aram,  as  was  also  Aram  to  the  Ilaurdn  ;* 
and  that  Job  may  iiave  been  a  descendant  of  Nahor,  the  brother 
of  Abraham.  But  whether  Job  was  an  Israelite  or  Ishmaelite, 
it  is  generally  admitted  that  he  lived  in  Arabia,  near  the  fron- 
tier of  Palestine ;  that  he  must  have  had  some  acquaintance 
with  Abraham  or  his  immediate  descendants;  and  that  the 
country  named  fulfills  the  conditions  of  the  narrative  better 
than  any  other  known.  This  region  was  never  before  visited 
by  an  American,  and  it  was  with  peculiar  feelings  we  strolled 
over  tlie  traditional  estate  of  Job,  drank  from  the  spring  of 
Job,  slept  in  the  old  house  of  Job,  and  cooked  our  meals  on, 
perhaps,  the  same  hearth-stone  where  that  holy  man,  in  his 
great  affliction,  once  sat  in  the  ashes. 

From  the  inspired  record  it  appears  that  Job  was  an  eastern 
prince  of  great  wealth  and  unflinching  integrity.  Of  no  other 
man  was  it  ever  said  by  the  Almighty,  "  There  is  none  like  him 
in  the  earth,  a  perfect  and  an  upright  man  ;  one  that  fears  God, 
and  escheweth  evil." '  As  a  writer,  his  style  is  highly  Oriental, 
his  conceptions  sublime,  and  his  arguments  unanswerable.  No 
other  book  in  the  Old  Testament  is  so  full  of  divine  truth,  and 
none  contain  such  revelations  of  the  invisible  world.  It  was 
probably  first  written  in  the  Arabic,  and  afterward  translated 
into  the  Hebrew  by,  perhaps,  Moses,  who  is  supposed  to  have 
been  his  contemporary ;  though  some  biblical  historians  make 
him  the  contemporary  of  Abraham. 

All  this   region  was  anciently  known  as  "  the  East,"  and  it 

•  Job  xxxii,  2.  »  1  Chronicles  ii,  23.  *  Job  i,  8. 


392 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


was  probably  from  here  the  Magi  came  with  their  costly  pres- 
ents to  worship  the  infant  Saviom*;  as  frankincense,  myrrh, 
and  other  aromatics  are  indigenous  to  this  section,  and  a  star 
blazing  over  Bethlehem  could  be  distinctly  seen  from  here. 

IS^othing  could  be  more  picturesque  than  the  scenery  around 
Kunawat.  The  babbling  waters  leap  in  cascades  down  the 
mountain.  The  hills  are  covered  with  forests  of  oak — the  oaks 
of  Bashan ;  and  from  almost  every  high  place  some  round  tower 
or  ruined  temple,  overrun  with  woodbine,  wild  flowers,  and 
creepers,  may  be  seen  lifting  its  venerable  weather-beaten  head, 
as  if  defying  the  ravages  of  time. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

ARGOB   AND   PA  DAN-ARAM. 

Tribal  Wars — The  Lejah — A  Sea  of  Congealed  Iron — Part  of  Ancient  Argob — 
Druses — Tlieir  History  and  Religion — Edrei,  the  Ancient  Capital  of  Bashan — 
Taken  by  Moses — Mirage — Padan-Aram — Haran,  near  Damascus — Laban  the 
Syrian. 

rpHE  night  before  leaving  Kunawdt  we  were  waited  on  by  a 
deputation  from  the  village,  and  told  not  to  be  alarmed  if 
we  heard  firing  in  the  night,  as  they  expected  an  attack  from 
some  of  their  enemies,  with  whom  they  had  had  a  quarrel,  as 
usual,  about  a  young  woman.  Frequent  reports  of  guns  were 
heard  during  the  night,  but  I  slept  through  all ;  and  in  the 
morning  learned  that  eight  of  the  enemy  had  been  killed, 
and  twelve  or  more  wounded.  The  victory  was  celebrated  by 
a  grand  war-dance,  very  similar  to  that  among  the  North  Ameri- 
can Indians. 

Soon  after  leaving  camp  we  saw  a  large  wolf  near  some  tombs 
west  of  Kenath,  and  shoutly  afterward  a  hyena  ran  slowly  across 
our  path.  In  about  two  hours  we  passed  Suleim,  where  there 
is  the  ruin  of  a  beautiful  temple,  and  crossing  a  rich  plain,  cov- 
ered with  porous  tufa  bowlders,  struck  about  noon  the  Lejah,  a 
most  singular  region.  The  name  signifies  "rocky,"  and 'is  de- 
scriptive of  its  physical  aspect,  being  a  wild,  sterile  district  re- 
sembling a  sea  of  lava  j^oured  out  from  a  thousand  craters,  and 
spread  like  a  coat  of  mail  over  the  surface  of  the  plain.  It 
looks  very  much  like  iron,  is  about  as  hard,  and  when  riding 

over  it,  has  the  ring  of  iron.     Though  you  see  no  great  ele- 

393 


394  BIBLE   LANDS. 

vations,  the  surface  is  not  level,  but  undulating  and  broken- 
very  rough  in  places,  with  many  deep  chasms  and  fissures,  as  if 
there  had  been  internal  disturbances  and  upheavals  during  its 
cooling  progress — a  congealed  sea  of  iron. 

This  remarkable  district,  forming  the  northern  boundary  of 
the  Hauran,  is  about  twenty- live  miles  long  by  twenty  wide; 
and  has  always  been  a  hiding-place  for  Bedouin  robbers  and 
wild  beasts,  and  a  place  of  retreat  for  the  natives  in  time  of 
danger,  the  numerous  caves  and  clefts  affording  them  a  safe 
shelter  from  their  enemies ;  its  rocky  fastnesses  being  inac- 
cessible to  horsemen,  and  its  labyrinth  of  pits  and  crevices 
dangerous  to  footmen.  The  Arabs  call  it  tlie  "  Fortress  of 
Xrod."  Being  in  the  midst  of  a  vast  plain  unsurpassed  for  its 
productiveness,  the  remains  of  at  least  fifty  cities  and  villages 
are  found  within  its  iron-clad  limits ;  built  there,  no  doubt,  for 
security,  as  there  are  no  living  streams  in  this  desolate  region, 
and  the  only  arable  ground  a  few  small  patches  in  the  depres- 
sions, formed  by  the  dust  blown  in  from  the  surrounding  plain. 
That  the  Lejah  is  a  portion  of  the  Argob  of  Scripture,  after- 
ward known  as  Trachonitis,  there  can  be  but  little  doubt,  the 
Hebrew  Argob  having  the  same  meaning  as  the  Greek  Trach- 
onitis, and  the  same  cities  located  by  Moses  in  the  former,  later 
historians  locate  in  the  latter.  We  also  find  on  the  temple  at 
Musmeih,  ancient  Phaeno,  one  of  the  principal  cities  of  the 
Lejah,  an  inscription  of  forty  lines,  giving  a  history  of  the 
place  as  the  capital  of  Trachonitis  ;  thus  establishing  beyond 
controversy  the  identity  of  the  Lejah  with  Argob,  and  Argob 
with  Trachonitis,  over  which  "  Philip  the  Tetrarch  "  ruled  in 
the  days  of  Christ.' 

Many  of  the    villages   of  the  Lejali   and    of   the    Han  ran 

'  Luke  iii,  1. 


DRUSES.  395 

are  occupied  by  Druses,  a  peculiar  people,  with  a  strange 
history  and  mysterious  religion.  They  are  of  Caucasian  ex- 
traction, being  the  descendants  of  the  Mardi,  a  warlike  tribe 
from  north  of  the  Caspian  Sea,  who  settled  among  the  Lebanon 
mountains  about  the  close  of  the  seventh  century  of  our  era. 
They  have  always  been  an  independent,  exclusive,  and  revenge- 
ful people,  and  yet  noted  for  their  hospitality,  truthfulness, 
and  temperance.  Strangers  among  them  are  entertained  in 
true  patriarchal  style.  To  one  of  their  own  sect  they  never 
tell  a  falsehood ;  and  a  good  Druse  never  drinks  wine  nor 
smokes  tobacco.  Their  religion  is  a  mixture  of  idolatry,  Mo- 
hammedanism, and  Christianity,  dating  back  to  the  Egyptian 
Caliph  Hakin,  whom  they  regard  as  their  founder  and  prophet. 
Their  meetings  for  worship  are  held  on  Thursday  evenings, 
and  are  of  a  social,  religious,  and  political  character.  Having  no 
regular  priesthood,  these  services  are  conducted  by  their  sheiks, 
or  emirs,  as  they  are  called,  who  are  their  religious  and  political 
leaders.  These  meetings  are  all  held  secretly,  no  stranger  or 
uninitiated  person  being  admitted  under  any  circumstances,  and 
in  character  partake  of  a  secret  organization,  with  different  de- 
grees, signs,  and  passwords.  They  are  an  intelligent,  tidy,  and 
industrious  people,  almost  white,  with  red  cheeks,  and  in  every 
respect  far  superior  to  the  ordinary  Arab.  In  making  some  ex- 
plorations in  this  region.  Prof.  I>ewis,  of  Beirut,  on  one  occa- 
sion, left  his  horse,  shawl,  and  gloves  near  the  path.  After  an 
hour's  absence  he  returned,  and  was  surprised  to  find  his  shawl 
and  gloves  gone.  He  at  once  communicated  the  robbery  to 
the  emir  of  the  nearest  village,  remarking,  "That  he  thought 
the  Druses  were  never  guilty  of  stealing,  and  was  sorry  to 
lose  his  good  opinion  of  them."  The  emir  replied,  "  It 
was   not  his    people    that    committed   the    theft,    but   some 


i^96  BIBLE   LANDS. 

Christians  who  had  passed  that  way  during  the  professor's 
absence."  However  tliat  may  be,  the  articles  were  returned 
in  a  few  hours. 

Nejran  is  a  large  old  city  within  the  Lejah,  but  its  ancient 
name  and  history  are  unknown.  It  is  now  inhabited  by  the 
Druses,  and,  as  we  drew  near  tlie  place,  the  emir  and  his  chiefs 
met  ns  with  the  usual  salani,  giving  us  a  cordial  welcome, 
and,  after  entertaining  us  in  the  most  hospitable  manner,  ex- 
pressed their  regrets  as  we  were  leaving  that  we  could  not 
stay  with  them  longer.  One  hour  from  here  brought  us  to 
the  extensive  ruins  of  Kiratah,  where  there  is  an  abundance 
of  water.  Soon  after  leaving  this  place  we  were  overtaken  by 
a  furious  wind  and  rain-storm  ;  some  of  our  pack  mules  were 
swamped,  and  one  we  rescued  with  great  difficulty  from  the 
rushing  waters,  which  carried  him  far  down  the  stream.  The 
sun,  liowever,  came  out  bright  and  .  warm  as  we  approached 
Edrei,  where  we  encamped  for  the  night,  much  to  the  alarm 
and  amazement  of  its  sparse  population. 

Edrei,  the  ancient  capital  of  Bashan,'  is  situated  on  a  spur  of 
the  Lejah,  that  runs  far  out  toward  the  west  into  the  fertile 
plain  \vhich  incloses  it  on  three  sides.  The  ruins  are  not  so 
extensive,  but  appear  older  than  those  of  Bozrah.  Many  of 
the  houses  are  still  in  their  primitive  state,  though  half  buried 
in  the  rubbish  of  ages.  Every  thing  about  them  is  stone — black 
basalt,  hard  as  flint — and  yet,  in  some  instances,  of  beautiful 
workmanship,  though  generally  massive,  gloomy,  and  rude.  As 
the  city  had  to  rely  entirely  upon  the  rains  for  water,  there  are 
many  cisterns,  and  underground  vaults  for  storing  grain.  So 
when  you  ride  through  the  city  there  is  a  liollow  sound,  as  if 
you  were  riding  over  subterranean  houses.    It  was  with  peculiar 

'  Numbers  xxi,  33. 


EDREI.  399 

feelings  we  stood  on  the  walls  of  this  old  city  of  Og,  and 
looked  out  over  the  rich  plain,  and  considered  that  on  that 
very  plain  the  Amorites  met  the  conquering  Israelites  in  battle, 
and  that  perhaps  on  the  very  spot  we  were  gazing  on  the  giant 
king  of  Bashan  fell  when  his  whole  army  was  routed  by  Moses, 
thirty  centuries  and  more  ago.'. 

There  are  here  several  churches  that  well  deserve  a  passing 
notice.  That  of  St.  Elias,  though  in  ruins,  is  the  old  church  of 
John  Methodius,  and  certainly  the  oldest  Methodist  church  in 
the  world.  The  Church  of  St.  George — not  tlie  saint  who  killed 
the  dragon,  but  the  porter  who  aided  Paul  in  liis  escape  from 
Damascus — is  a  unique  building,  of  an  early  date  and  almost 
perfect.  It  is  square  without  and  octagonal  within,  witli  an 
apsis,  containing  three  tiers  of  stone  seats,  back  of  the  pulpit. 
The  rotunda  is  surmounted  by  an  egg-shaped  dome,  thirty-six 
feet  in  diameter,  resting  on  eight  square  piers.  There  never 
could  have  been  a  particle  of  wood  about  the  building ;  the 
seats,  altar-rails,  doors,  shutters,  ceiling,  roof,  every  thing  stone. 
From  an  inscription  over  the  door  we  learn  that  it  was  first  a 
heathen  temple,  then  a  Christian  church,  and  now  a  Moham- 
medan mosque.  In  the  crypt  we  found  many  human  skeletons 
wrapped  in  their  winding-sheets,  perhaps  tlie  relics  of  the  men 
and  women  who  once  sat  under  the  preaching  of  Paul — the  first 
converts  from  paganism  —sleeping  here,  in  their  silent  tombs, 
awaiting  the  trump  of  God,  which  shall  call  them  to  life  again. 

To  avoid  the  sharp  rocks  of  the  Lejah,  we  turned  to  the  Avest 
from  Edrei,  reaching  Aere  for  luncheon.  We  found  here  some 
large  ruins,  but  were  not  able  to  make  any  thing  out  of  them. 
Some  of  the  stone  doors  were  folding,  and  large  enough  to  ride 
through  without  difficulty. 

•Numbers  xxi,  33-35. 


400  BIBLE   LANDS. 

At  Aere  we  struck  again  the  great  Flaj  trail  from  Damascus 
to  Mecca,  which  follows  the  old  Roman  road  far  down  into 
Southern  Arabia.  Many  caravans  were  going  and  coming,  but 
all  under  guard.  How  strange  that  from  the  oldest  city  in  the 
world  not  a  caravan,  diligence,  or  traveler  can  leave  except 
under  military  escort !  Riding,  over  the  plain  a  little  west  of 
the  Lejali,  we  witnessed  a  singular  phenomenon — ^one  of  those 
beautiful  mirages  peculiar  to  this  region,  produced,  probably, 
by  the  glare  of  the  sun  on  this  metallic  mirror.  The  entire 
Lejah  looked  like  a  rippled  sea  of  glass,  bordered  with  foi-ests, 
with  here  and  there  islands  covered  with  foliage.  The  whole 
effect  was  wonderful.  In  the  evening  we  encamped  at  a  place 
called  Ghubaghib,  near  a  Turkish  garrison,  and  were  compelled 
to  add  two  of  the  soldiers  to  our  guard  to  keep  the  garrison 
from  robbing  us.     Such  is  Turkish  rule. 

Starting  at  an  early  hour  to  avoid  the  heat,  a  ride  of  two 
hours  brought  us  to  Musmeih,  the  Phaeno  of  the  Greeks,  the 
capital  city  of  Trachonitis,  the  Argob  of  Joshua.  The  Lejah 
here^  has  the  same  general  appearance — that  of  a  molten  sea  of 
iron  suddenly  chilled,  then  settling  and  cracking,  leaving  the 
surface  full  of  rents  and  air-bubbles.  The  principal  ruin  at 
Musmeih  is  a  temple  of  a  florid  style  of  architecture.  Three 
Doric  columns  of  the  portico  are  still  standing,  and  to  the 
right  of  the  entrance,  on  the  door-casing,  is  the  long  inscription 
to  which  we  have  already  referred.  A  path  winding  among^ 
the  broken  and  jagged  rocks  leads  from  here  to  Burak,  a  de- 
serted city  on  the  extreme  northern  limit  of  the  Lejah,  contain- 
ing many  massive  houses  with  beautiful  stone  doors,  the  slabs 
forming  the  roofs  and  floors  looking  like  oak  plank,  twelve 
feet  long  and  three  inches  thick,  nicely  jointed.  Many  of  the 
houses  were  well  preserved.     From  Burak  the  road  leads  di- 


PADAN-ARAM.  401 

rectly  to  Damascus,  distant  about  twenty-five  miles;  but  we 
shall  sweep  round  to  the  east  by  way  of  Harran  el  Awaraid, 
which  is  more  than  likely  the  Haran  where  Abraham  buried 
his  father  on  his  way  to  Canaan. 

The  country  called  Aram  probably  took  its  name  from  Aram, 
the  son  of  Shem  and  father  of  Uz,  who  first  settled  in  this 
quarter  of  the  globe.  After  the  Greek  conquest  it  was  known 
as  Syria,  and  in  the  Greek  translations  of  the  Bible  Aram  is 
always  rendered  Syria,  the  two  names  having  the  same  import 
and  being  used  in  common  to  denote  the  same  country.  The 
name  signifies  "  highland,"  and  was  originally  applied  to  both 
ranges  of  the  Lebanon,  the  Hauran,  and  all  the  mountains  of 
Palestine  on  both  sides  of  the  Jordan  as  far  north  as  the 
Orontes.  Of  the  several  districts  into  which  this  country  was 
divided,  Aram  Damascus  was  the  principal ;  and  though  at 
first  it  only  included  the  territory  around  that  ancient  city,  was 
afterward  applied  to  the  whole  of  Syria,  of  which  Damascus 
was  for  a  long  time  the  capital.  Padan-Aram,  where  "  Laban 
the  Syrian  " '  lived,  rendered  in  the  Hebrew  Aram-Naharaim, 
"  the  Plain  of  Aram,"  or  the  country  between  the  rivers,  or,  as 
Dean  Stanley  renders  it,  "the  cultivated  district  at  the  foot  of 
the  hills,"  we  think,  with  Drs.  Beke  and  Porter,  refers  to  the 
Plain  of  Damascus  between  the  rivers  Pharpar  and  Abana. 
In  the  Septuagint  version  of  the  Scriptures  Aram-Naharaim 
is  translated  "Mesopotamia  in  Syria,"  or  Syria  of  the  two 
rivers,  as  if  a  distinction  was  to  be  made  between  it  and  the 
country  lying  between  the  Tigris  and  Euphrates. 

When  the  Almighty  appeared  to  Abraham  and  commanded 
him  to  get  out  of  his  own  country,  he  left  "  the  land  of  his 
nativity,  Ur  of    the  Chaldees,""  situated,  not   on   the  head- 

'  Genesis  xxv,  20.  *  Acts  vii,  2;  Genesis  xi,  31. 


402  BIBLE     LANDS. 

waters  of  the  Euphrates,  but  down  near  its  entrance  into  the 
Persian  Gulf,  and  settled  first  at  Haran,  which  appears  to  have 
been  somewhere  near  the  borders  of  Canaan.  And  when  we 
consider  that  his  steward,  who  was  "  born  in  his  house,"  and 
whom  he  raised  up  as  his  heir,  was  "  Eliezer  of  Damascus,"  ' 
the  clear  meaning  of  which  is,  he  was  born  in  or  near  Damas- 
cus, and  that  Josephus  informs  us  Abraham  was  a  prince  in 
this  land,  and  "  reigned  at  Damascus,"  ^  we  infer  that  Haran 
could  not  liave  been  very  far  from  that  city.  The  river  that 
Jacob  passed  over  after  leaving  Laban  ^  was  probably  the  Phar- 
par,  as  from  here  he  could  see  the  mountains  of  Gilead,  which 
is  implied  in  the  narrative.  And  it  appear?  he  was  only  ten 
days  making  the  journey,  with  his  family  and  flocks,  from 
Padan-Aram  to  Mount  Gilead,  and  Laban  only  seven  days  in 
overtaking  him.  We  rode  it. in  eight  days;  but  from  the 
Mesopotamia  of  the  Greeks  the  journey  could  not  be  made  in 
less  than  thirty  days,  and  through  a  desert  part  of  the  way, 
where  it  would  be  impossible  to  drive  flocks  with  their  young. 
It  will  also  be  remembered  that  Nahor,  the  brother  of  Abra- 
ham, when  living  at  Haran,  named  one  of  his  sons  Uz,  indi- 
cating a  connection  between  Haran  and  the  land  or  family  of 
Uz ;  and  that  Laban  and  Jacob,  when  they  parted  for  the  last 
time  on  Mizpah-Gilead,  erected  an  altar,  and  heaped  up  stones 
of  witness  to  define  the  boundary  between  the  possessions  of 
the  two  families,*  showing  that  they  could  not  have  lived  very 
far  apart. 

Now,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  after  the  lapse  of  near  four 
thousand  years,  we  find  in  the  delta  of  the  Pharpar  and  Abana, 
about  twelve  miles  east  of  Damascus,  the  remains  of  a  city  still 

'  Genesis  xv,  2.  ^  Antiquities  i,  7. 

3 Genesis  xxxi,  21,  23.  '•Genesis  xxxi,  52. 


HARAN.  403 

bearing  the  name  of  Harran,  wliioli  meets  every  condition  of 
the  inspired  account.  It  is  situated  in  the  midst  of  a  fertile 
plain  between  the  two  rivers,  and  on  the  shores  of  what  was 
once  a  large  lake  before  the  M^aters  were  drawn  off  to  irrigate 
the  desert.  Three  Ionic  columns  of  black  basalt  are  all  that 
remains  standing  of  an  ancient  temple  without  name  or  date ; 
and  these  silent  witnesses,  with  a  few  fi'agments  of  sculpture, 
and  some  broken  stone  pillars,  are  the  only  memorials  left  to 
mark  the  site  of  tliis  interesting  place  ;  which,  so  far  as  location 
and  topography  are  concerned,  may  be  Haran, "  The  city  of 
Kahor,"  1  whei-e  Terah,  the  father  of  Abraham,  died,  and 
where  '•  Laban  the  Syrian  "  lived.  And  "  the  well  in  the 
field,"  where  the  maidens  still  water  their  flocks,  may  be  the 
same  from  which  Rebecca  often  filled  her  pitcher,  and  where 
Jacob  first  met  with  his  beautiful  Rachel." 

'Genesis  xxiv,  10.  *  Genesis  xxix,  10. 

26 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

LATEST   DISCOVERIES   IN   ASSYRIA   AND   PALESTINE. 

Recovery  of  Long-lost  Xiueveh — Wonderful  remains  of  an  Extinct  Nation — As- 
syrian Records  of  the  Creation — Cesnola's  Explorations  in  Cyprus— Moabite 
Pottery — Suburbs  of  the  Levitical  Cities — Golden  Candlestick — Image  of  Beel- 
zebub— House  of  Simon  the  Tatuier — Hadrian's  Head. 

THE  discoveries  lately  made  in  Assyria  among  tlie  ruins  of 
long-buried  ISTineveh  and  Babylon,  by  Botta,  Lay ard,  Smithy 
and  others,  are  a  most  valuable  contribution  to  biblical  archae- 
ology. 

These  cities  appear  to  have  been  founded  about  the  same 
time :  ISTineveh,  the  capital  of  Assyria,  by  Asshur,  son  of 
Shem — who  may  also  have  given  his  name  to  the  country — on 
the  river  Tigris,  five  hundred  miles  above  its  junction  with 
tlie  Euphrates ;  Babylon,  the  capital  of  Chaldsea,  by  Nimrod, 
the  grandson  of  Ham,  on  the  Euphrates  in  the  land  of  "  Shi- 
nar,"  three  hundred  miles  south  of  Nineveh.  From  the  fre- 
quent reference  to  Nimrod  on  the  Babylonian  monuments,  the 
name,  like  that  of  Pharaoh,  probably  applied  to  all  the  early 
kings  of  Babylonia. 

Very  little  is  known  of  the  early  history  of  these  cities.  It 
would  appear,  however,  from  recent  explorations,  that  the  As- 
syrians at  an  early  period  conquered  Chaldsea,  and  that  after 
this  event  the  two  nations  became  one  empire — their  language, 
religion,  and  customs  appearing  to  be  essentially  the  same — and 
that  the  old  Accadian  language  of  Chaldaea  or  Babylonia  grad- 
ually became  extinct,  being  substituted  by  the  Semitic  or  As- 
404 


EXCATATIOXS    AT    XISEVEH. 


RECOVERY  OF  NINEVEH.  407 

Syrian.  Nineveh  was  made  the  political  capital  of  the  new 
empire,  and  Babylon  the  religious  capital,  or  city  of  her  tem- 
ples, gods,  and  priests. 

Profane  writers  furnish  ns  with  nothing  but  some  traditions 
touching  the  history  of  these  renowned  cities,  and  the  only  re- 
liable information  we  possess  of  them  is  the  little  we  glean 
from  the  Jewish  prophets,  and  the  results  of  late  geographical 
and  archgeological  explorations. 

Nineveh,  after  flourishing  for  many  centuries  as  the  great 
city  of  the  East,  suddenly  disappeared  from  the  earth  about  seven 
centuries  before  Christ,  as  if  engulfed  by  an  earthquake,  and 
for  ages  all  traces  of  the  place  were  lost.  Herodotus,  Xeno- 
phon,  and  other  ancient  historians  make  no  mention  of  it  ex- 
cept as  a  city  no  longer  existing.  Xerxes,  Alexander,  and  the 
Romans  marched  their  armies  and  fought  their  battles  over  its 
site  without  knowing  that  the  city  lay  buried  beneath  their 
tread.  Many  persons  began  to  doubt  whether  such  a  place 
ever  did  exist ;  and  skeptics  began  sneeringly  to  inquire  of  the 
Christian,  "  Where  is  your  great  Nineveh  ?  What  do  you  think 
of  Jonah  and  his  whale  story  ?  Ah,  Jonah  was  nothing  but  a 
myth — his  book  nothing  but  a  fable — no  such  city  as  Nineveh 
ever  existed."  And  some  believers  began  to  fear  the  long- 
lost  capital  of  Assyria  never  would  be  recovered,  so  literally 
was  the  prediction  concerning  it  fulfilled :  '•  I  will  make  Nin- 
eveh a  desolation,  and  dry  like  a  wilderness.  And  flocks 
shall  lie  down  in  the  midst  of  her,  .  .  .  This  is  the  rejoicing 
city  that  dwelt  carelessly,  that  said  in  her  heart,  I  am,  and 
there  is  none  besides  me :  how  is  she  become  a  desolation,  a 
place  for  beasts  to  lie  down  in  I  every  one  that  passeth  by  her 
shall  hiss,  and  wag  his  hand."  * 

'  Zephaniali  ii,  13-15. 


408 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


Early  in  the  present  century  Mr.  Rich,  an  English  traveler, 
visiting  Mosul,  on  the  Tigris,  observed  an  old  mosque  on  the 
top  of  a  large  mound  directly  opposite  the  city,  and  on  inquir- 
ing its  name,  was  told  by  the  natives  that  it  was  Neby  Yunus, 
or  tomb  of  Jonah.  Associating  Jonah  with  Nineveh,  he  at 
once  commenced  some  excavations,  and  soon  came  upon  the 
ruins  of  what  has  since  proved  to  be  the  grand  palace  of  Esar- 
haddon,  son  and  successor  of  Sennacherib.     The  walls  were  of 


ASSTRIAN   SCULPTURE — WINGED   LION. 


great  thickness,  and  built  of  large  sun-dried  bricks   covered 
with  mysterious  cuneiform  characters. 

This  discovery  soon  led  to  others,  of  even  greater  importance, 
by  Mr.  Botta,  the  French  Consul  at  Mosul,  and  Messrs.  Layard, 
Rassam,  and  Smith,  under  the  auspices  of  the  British  Museum. 
These  gentlemen,  with  a  strong  force,  began  their  operations  in 
the  great  mounds  at  Koyunjik,  Khorsabad,  andNimroud — names 
of  Arab  villages  that  have  sprung  up  over  the  ruins  of  this 


INTERESTING    SCULPTURE. 


409 


ancient  city — and  in  a  very  little  while  exhumed  the  magnifi- 
cent palaces  of  Sargon,  Sennacherib,  Sardanapalus,  and  other 
kings  of  Assyria,  with  their  wonderful  collection  of  sculptured 
slabs  in  alto  and  bass-relief,  representing  the  worship  of  their 
gods,  combats  with  wild  beasts,  battle-scenes,  and  almost  every 
event  in  their  nation's  history.  So  that  now,  after  the  lapse  of 
twenty-five  centuries,  you  can  stroll  through  the  streets  and 
palaces  of  long-lost  Xineveh,  see  how  royalty  lived  in  those  early 
days,  and  can  almost  fancy  you  hear  her  kings  tell  of  their  great 
exploits  from  the  thrones  that  are  crumbling  with  age  beneath 
them.     In  one  sculpture  Sennacherib  is  portrayed  with  a  spear. 


KING  OF  ASSYRIA  PUTTING  OtTT  THE  EYES  OP  CAPTIVES. 

■cruelly  putting  out  the  eyes  of  prisoners  dragged  into  his  pres- 
■ence  with  cords,  and  iron  hooks  through  their  lips  or  nose.  In 
another,  we  have  pictured  the  invasion  of  Palestine,  gi^'ing  the 
very  name  of  Hezekiah,  King  of  Judah,  together  with  the 
number  of  prisoners  and  amount  of  spoils  can-ied  away,  and  in 
still  another,  a  description  of  the  siege  of  Jerusalem,  agreeing 
80  remarkably  with  Ezekiel's  account,  that  one  would  suppose 
the  Prophet  had  been  an  eye-witness  of  the  siege  itself.* 

>  Ezekiel  iv,  1,  2. 


410  BIBLE   LANDS. 

During  their  explorations  they  came  upon  tlie  bakery  of 
King  Sargon's  palace,  and  the  old  hand-mills,  with  loaves  of 
bread  still  in  the  ovens,  baked  probably  before  Rome  was 
founded  ;  and  the  wine-cellar  was  discovered  full  of  large  egg- 
shaped  pottery  jars ;  the  wine  had  all  evaporated,  leaving  a 
sediment  in  the  jars,  from  which  you  could  easily  detect  the 
odor  of  the  grape  when  the  vessels  were  filled  with  water. 
They  also  struck  upon  the  store-room,  containing  many  articles 
in  different  materials,  principally  wrought  iron,  such  as  nails, 
saws,  chains,  picks,  and  shovels,  the  latter  weighing  from  twenty 
to  thirty  pounds,  and  so  well  preserved,  they  were  put  at  once 
into  the  hands  of  the  workmen,  and  the  excavations  carried  on 
with  shovels  and  picks  forged  1^  blacksmiths  centuries  before 
Christ  was  born.     How  marvelous  all  this  seems! 

This  palace  consisted  of  forty-nine  halls,  cased  round  with 
sculptured  alabaster  slabs,  from  seven  to  eight  feet  high, 
above  which  the  walls  were  plastered  and  frescoed.  The 
ceilings  of  the  different  apartments  were  cedar  from  Leb- 
anon, or  blackwood  from  India,  the  floors  were  paved  with 
marble,  and  the  principal  door-ways  guarded  by  colossal, 
human-headed,  winged  bulls  or  lions,  denoting  great  strength, 
wisdom,  and  fleetness;  beautiful  symbols  of  their  divinities. 
The  gates  leading  to  the  palaces  were  bronze,  two  of  whichy 
twenty-two  feet  high  and  sixteen  feet  wide,  have  lately  been 
recovered  by  Mr.  Rassam  at  Balawat,  belonging  to  the  royal 
residence  of  Shalmaneser  II.,  richly  wrought  in  low  relief,  re- 
cording among  many  other  campaigns  the  invasion  and  con- 
quest of  Israel  by  that  king  859  B.  C.  Shalmaneser  also  built 
the  north-west  palace  at  Nimroud,  in  which  was  found  the 
celebrated  black  obelisk  now  in  the  British  Museum.  This- 
obelisk,  which  is  seven  feet  high  and  twenty-two  inches  square 


BLACK    OBELISK.  411 

at  its  base,  supplies  a  lost  link  in  Assyrian  history,  giving  a  full 
account  of  the  reign  of  Shalmaneser  II.,  who  ascended  the 
throne  about  890  B.  C. 

The  monument  bears  a  Cuneitic  inscription  of  two  hundred 
and  ten  lines,  and  is  covered  v/ith  figures  in  bass-relief  of  men 


BLACK  OBELISK. 


and  various  animals,  but  not  very  correctly  drawn — the  rhinoc- 
eros having  hoofs  and  mane,  the  monkeys  perfect  human 
features,  and  the  camels  two  humps  on  their  backs. 

After  an  invocation  to  Assarac,  the  supreme  god  of  heaven, 
the  king  furnishes  a  record  of  his  reign  for  thirty-one  years. 


412 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


INSCRIBED   TABLET   OF   THE   DELUGE. 

comprising  an  account  of  battles  fought,  kings  conquered,  and 
cities  taken.  Among  many  other  places  mentioned,  are  Baby- 
lon, Borsippa,  Tyre,  and  Sidon ;  and  among  his  vassal  kings, 
Jehu,  king  of  Israel,  and  Hazael,  king  of  Syria,  whom  Elijah 
anointed— confirming  in  a  remarkable  manner  the  historical 
statements  of  the  Bible. 

But  the  most  interesting  discovery  made  was  the  finding  of 
numerous  inscribed  tablets  and  cylinders  in  the  palaces  of  Sen- 


RECORDS   OF  THE   CREATION   AND   DELUGE.  413 

iiaclierib,  and  his  grandson  Asshur-bani-pal,  or  Sardanapalus, 
•opposite  Mosul.  Hundreds  of  volumes  were  here  found,  not 
written  on  paper  or  parchment,  but  in  the  cuneiform  character 
on  thin  bricks  or  clay  tiles  while  yet  soft,  and  then  burned  hard 
in  the  kiln.  The  books  were  neatly  paged,  numbered,  cata- 
logued, and  arranged  upon  shelves  for  the  convenience  of  the 
reader.  They  were  on  all  subjects — history,  poetry,  and  biogra- 
phy; agriculture,  religion,  and  politics;  also  grammars,  arith- 
metics, and  dictionaries ;  legal  documents,  songs  to  their  gods, 
tables  of  cube  roots,  even  the  multiplication  table,  that  before 
this  was  supposed  to  have  originated  with  Pythagoras.  One 
work  on  astronomy  covered  seventy  tablets,  giving  the  posi- 
tion of  the  pole  star,  tlie  movements  of  the  comets,  and  •of 
Venus  and  other  planets.  A  library  was  found  belonging  to 
one  of  the  early  kings  of  Ur  in  Chaldsea,  at  least  2,000  years 
B.  C.  Abraham  was  a  native  of  this  city,  and  here  were  the 
books  that  perhaps  the  patriarch  read  before  he  left  his  native 
land.  More  than  twenty  thousand  of  these  tablets  have  been 
recovered,  and,  what  is  very  strange,  thej^  all  bear  silent  M'it- 
ness  to  the  truth  of  God's  word  ;  for  here,  on  these  earthen 
tiles,  as  well  as  on  the  gates  of  brass  and  slabs  of  marble  that 
■once  adorned  these  splendid  palaces,  was  found  written  the 
whole  history  of  the  world,  from  the  creation  down  to  a  thou- 
sand years  after  the  flood ;  wonderfully  confirming  the  Mosaic 
narrative,  as  these  ancient  legends,  some  of  them  dating  back 
four  thousand  years,  must  have  originated  in  facts,  and  these 
facts  are  the  facts  of  the  Bible. 

Not  only  was  here  found  an  account  of  the  creation,  the 
xieluge,  and  the  building  of  the  Tower  of  Babel,  but  of  the 
genesis  of  our  world  —  the  beginning,  when  "  the  earth  was 
without  form  and  void  ;"  also,  of  the  origin  of  evil,  and  of 


414  BIBLE   LANDS. 

man,  with  all  the  particulars  of  his  temptation,  his  fall,  the 
curse  pronounced  upon  him,  and  his  expulsion  from  Paradise. 

But  what  is  most  strange,  we  find  on  these  tablets  an 
account  of  the  Mammoth,  and  other  huge  extinct  monsters, 
the  fossil  remains  of  which  have  been  such  an  enigma  to  nat- 
uralists. And  on  one  of  the  seals  we  have  a  curious  rep- 
resentation of  the  cherubim  guarding  the  tree  of  life,  on  an- 
other the  casting  of  the  dragon,  or  Lucifer,  out  of  heaven ;  and 
on  still  another  Noah,  in  his  ark,  floating  on  a  shoreless  sea. 
We  also  find  on  these  cylinders  and  tablets  the  names  of  Abra- 
ham, Ishmael,  Noah,  Enoch,  and  other  biblical  characters. 


CHERUBIM    GUARDING    TRKE    OF    LIFE. 


These  records  further  show  that  "  Eden "  was  the  old  and 
natural  name  of  Babylon ;  and  we  have  furnished  here  a  geo- 
graphical description  of  the  garden  in  which  the  opening  scene 
of  human  history  is  laid ;  answering,  in  every  respect,  the 
particulars  as  given  in  the  Scriptures,  even  to  the  names  of  the 
four  rivers  that  watered  the  garden. 

Many  of  these  clay  tablets  are  not  more  than  from  three  to- 
four  inches  long,  by  two  inches  wide  and  half  an  inch  thick. 
The  writing  is  in  the  cuneiform  character,  and  in  some  instances. 
80  small  they  can  only  be  read  under  a  magnifying  glass,  and 
some  such  instrument  must  have  been  used  in  their  execution. 

Thus,  after  the  lapse  of  thousands  of  years,  we  see  dug  up 


ANTIQUITY    OF    BABYLON. 


415 


out  of  the  rubbisli  of  ages,  the  royal  library  of  the  Assyrian 
kings,  written  on  slabs  of  stone,  plates  of  brass,  and  tiles  of 
burned  clay,  and  so  fully  agreeing  with  the  inspired  volume, 
that  they  seem  almost  like  a  lapidary  edition  of  the  Book 
itself*  And  it  would  almost  seem  as  if  this  ancient  city  had 
been  allowed  to  remain  entombed  through  so  many  centuries 
solely  to  confound  the  folly  of  modem  skepticism. 

Babylon,  though  first  mentioned  in  connection  with  Nineveh, 
was  probably  founded  before  the  flood,  as  the  name  signifies 
*'the  gate  of  God,"  or  more  properly,  "the  gate-way  to   the 


KXPCLSION  OF  LUCIFER  OUT  OF  HEAVEN 


garden  of  God,"  and  it  more  than  likely  covered  the  site  of 
the  garden  of  Eden.  It  was  only  rebuilt  by  Nimrod,  grand- 
son of  Ham,  "  the  beginning  of  whose  kingdom  was  Babel," ' 
a  name  with  which  Babylon  became  confounded  after  the  con- 
fusion of  tongues. 

This  famous  city — the  capital  of  Shinar  or  Chaldsea — was 
greatly  enlarged  and  beautified  by  Semiramis  and  Kebuchad- 
nezzar.  Herodotus  and  other  ancient  historians  describe  it  as 
a  vast  city  situated  on  both  banks  of  the  Euphrates,  inclosed 
with  double  walls  of  great  height  and  thickness.     The  two 

'  Genesis  x,  10. 


416  BIBLE   LANDS. 

portions  of  the  city  were  connected  by  a  bridge  half  a  mile- 
long  spanning  tlie  river,  also  by  a  tunnel  under  the  river-bed^ 
traces  of  which  still  remain.  Becent  researches  show  that 
these  statements  in  reference  to  the  extent  and  magnificence  of 
Babylon  were  not  exaggerations. 

Mr.  Rassani,  so  long  connected  with  explorations  in  the  East, 
lias  lately  made  some  valuable  discoveries  on  the  site  of  this 
ancient  city.  He  has  succeeded  in  identifying  the  grand  palace 
of  Nebuchadnezzar,  and  in  connection  therewith  found  the  re- 
mains of  the  celebrated  hanging  gardens,  erected  by  that  king 
to  please  his  Median  queen  ;  great  mounds  of  earth  thrown  up 
in  terraces  on  stone  piers;  wells,  reservoirs,  and  aqueducts, 
used  doubtless  in  irrigating  the  gardens ;  ponderous  masses  of 
black  basaltic  rock,  to  represent  mountain  scenery,  which  must 
have  been  floated  down  the  river  from  the  hills  of  Armenia,, 
together  with  inscriptions  and  numerous  other  articles,  proving 
beyond  doubt  that  this  was  the  imperial  palace  of  Babylon's- 
greatest  king. 

Among  the  many  interesting  discoveries  made  here  were  the 
dens  where  the  wild  beasts  were  kept,  and  a  sculptured  colossal 
lion  in  basalt,  about  thirteen  feet  long  and  ten  liigh,  standing 
over  a  ])rostrate  man,  supposed  to  represent  Daniel  in  the  lions' 
den.  There  is  a  band  around  the  jaws  of  the  lion  like  a  muz- 
zle, indicating,  perhaps,  that  the  angel  "  shut  the  lion's  mouth."  ' 
And  in  the  mound  of  Birs-Ximrud,  the  supposed  site  of  the 
Tower  of  Babel,  Mr,  Rassam  found  the  remains  of  several 
richly  decorated  chambers.  The  painting  was  on  plastered 
walls  and  enameled  bricks  of  beautiful  designs.  Tliis  able 
explorer  also  discovered  the  palace  and  banqueting  hall  of  Bel- 
shazzar,  the  roof  of  which  was  Indian  blackwood,  supported  by 

'  Daniel  vi,  22. 


FULFILLMENT  OF  PROPHECY.  417^ 

Mosaic  columns  and  pillars  of  enameled  brick.  This  rich 
liall  was  probably  the  same  in  which  the  king  gave  the  great 
feast  to  his  thousand  lords,  and  saw  the  mysterious  writing  on 
the  wall,  the  night  he  was  slain,'  B.  C.  539.  It  has  been 
asserted  that  no  such  king  ever  reigned  at  Babylon,  his  name 
not  appearing  in  profane  history  ;  but  tablets  have  lately  been 
found  here  l)earing  the  identical  name  of  "  Belshazzar,  king  of 
the  Chaldfeans." 

This  was  Babylon's  last  king.  The  Medes  under  Cyrus, 
after  a  two  years'  siege,  that  night  entered  the  city.  It  was 
afterward  taken  by  the  Greeks,  who  removed  the  seat  of  em- 
pire to  Seleucia.  "  And  Babylon,  the  glory  of  kingdoms,  the 
beauty  of  the  Chaldees'  excellency,"  passed  forever  away. 
And  according  to  Isaiah's  prediction,  "  It  shall  never  be  inhal> 
ited,  neither  shall  it  be  dwelt  in  from  generation  to  genera- 
tion ;  neither  shall  the  Arabian  pitch  tent  there  ;  neither  shall 
the  shepherds  make  their  fold  there.  But  wild  beasts  of  the 
desert  shall  lie  there  ;  and  their  houses  shall  be  full  of  doleful 
creatures ;  and  owls  shall  dwell  there,  and  satyrs  shall  dance 
there.  And  the  wild  beasts  of  the  islands  shall  cry  in  their 
desolate  houses,  and  dragons  in  their  pleasant  palaces."  * 

What  Layard,  Rassam,  and  Smith  have  done  for  Xineveh 
and  Babylon,  General  Cesnola  has  done  for  Cyprus,  the 
Chittim  of  Scripture.  He  has  identified  eight  ancient  cities, 
explored  fifteen  temples  and  over  sixty  thousand  tombs  ;  and 
has  found  in  these  tombs  and  temples  twenty  thousand  vases, 
busts,  and  statues  in  marble  and  terra-cotta ;  three  thousand 
seven  hundred  and  nineteen  glass  vases  and  bottles;  sixteen 
hundred  articles  in  gold,  silver,  and  bronze,  some  of  beautiful 
workmanship ;  two  solid  gold  armlets,  weighing  two  pounds 

'  Daniel  v.  30.  *  Isaiah  xiii,  19-22. 


418  BIBLE    LANDS. 

each,  belonging  to  the  king  of  Paphos;  a  great  variety  of 
rings,  necklaces,  and  bracelets,  some  like  serpents,  others  with 
the  head  of  Medusa.  He  also  found  the  name  of  the  procon- 
sul, Panlus,  probably  Sergius  Paulus,  one  of  Paul's  converts, 
and  governor  of  Cyprus  at  the  time  of  the  apostle's  visit.' 

This  island  was  first  settled  by  the  Phoenicians,  afterward 
held  successively  by  the  Assyrians,  Egyptians,  Greeks,  Romans, 
and  Turks,  and  is  now  an  English  colony,  having  lately  been 
ceded  to  Great  Britain  by  the  Sultan  of  Turkey. 

Other  explorations  have  been  made  at  Sus,  or  Susa,  the 
Shushan  of  Scripture  and  royal  residence  of  the  Persian  kings, 
situated  on  the  river  Eulseus,  about  one  hundred  and  twenty 
miles  north  of  the  Persian  Gulf.  General  Williams  and  Mr. 
Loftus,  in  their  excavations  on  the  site  of  this  old  capital  of 
ancient  Elam,  found  the  citadel  and  other  extensive  remains, 
among  them  the  supposed  palace  of  Ahasuerus,  the  Xerxes  of 
history.  Tliis  ruin  stands  on  a  raised  platform  of  sun-dried 
bricks  covering  sixty  acres,  and  seventy  feet  high.  The  walls, 
being  of  sun-burnt  brick,  have  all  crumbled  to  dust,  but  the 
bases  of  seventy-two  richly  carved  pillars,  togetlier  with  many 
other  pieces  of  sculpture,  have  been  recovered. 

The  palace  was  a  pavilion  very  similar  to  that  at  Persepolis, 
consisting  of  a  grand  central  hall  or  inner  court,  two  .hundred 
feet  square,  paved  witli  colored  marble,  the  roof  of  which  was 
supported  by  thirty-six  beautiful  marble  columns  over  sixty 
feet  high.  This  hall  was  inclosed  on  tiiree  sides  by  wide  colon- 
nades or  porches,  in  which  Ahasuerus  gave  his  public  recep- 
tions. The  "inner  court"  was  where  he  held  his  private 
audiences,  and  probably  where  Queen  Esther  went  "  in  unto 
the  king,"  to  intercede  for  her  people.'  The  great  feast  was 
'  Acts  xiii,  7.  '  Esther  iv,  16. 


OTHER  IMPORTANT   DISCOVERIES.  419 

given  "in  the  gardens  of  tlie  king's  palace,"  or  the  courts  sur- 
rounding tlie  palace.  "  The  king's  gate,"  where  Mordecai  sat, 
was  a  hall  one  hundred  feet  square  that  stood  about  two  hun- 
dred feet  in  front  of  the  main  entrance. 

The  city  is  now  entirely  deserted,  save  by  lions,  wolves, 
jackals,  and  other  wild  beasts,  which  find  here  a  safe  hiding- 
place,  and  hold  their  nightly  carnivals  in  the  courts  of  the 
renowned  king  who  "  reigned  from  India  even  unto  Ethiopia," 
and  commanded  the  largest  army  ever  marshaled  on  earth. 
The  reputed  tombs  of  Daniel,  Esther,  and  Mordecai  are  still 
pointed  out  near  this — the  scene  of  their  labors  and  death. 

Equally  important  discoveries  are  being  made  in  Palestine. 
In  a  former  chapter  we  gave  an  account  of  the  finding  of  the 
"King's  Highway,"  over  which  the  Israelites,  after  passing 
the  wilderness,  entered  Canaan.  It  is  a  paved  road,  with  side 
walls,  and  can  easily  be  traced  from  "  the  city  that  stood  in  the 
midst  of  the  river,"  at  the  "  fords  of  Arnon,"  through  Aroer 
to  Heshbon  and  Kebo.  Dibon,  once  the  capital  of  Moab,  and 
where  the  celebrated  Mesha  stone  was  found,  was  situated  on 
this  highway,  and  just  now  is  the  center  of  considerable  inter- 
est from  reports  that  other  similar  stones  have  been  discovered 
near  there,  during  the  last  year.  It  is  also  in  this  neighborhood 
that  the  ,unique  Moabite  pottery  is  found,  about  Mhich  there 
has  been  such  a  sharp  controversy  among  antiquaiians.  Per- 
sonally, we  have  no  doubt  concerning  the  genuineness  of  these 
articles,  but  are  not  disposed  to  discuss  the  question  here.  The 
savants  of  Europe  are  at  work  upon  the  inscriptions,  and  the 
result  of  their  investigations  will  shortly  be  made  known.  We, 
however,  are  fully  satisfied  from  what  has  already  been  deci- 
phered, that  the  discovery  will  shed  much  additional  light  upon 

many  obscure  portions  of  Old  Testament  history. 

27 


420 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


The  collection  thus  far  made  consists  of  about  fifteen  thous- 
sand  kiln-burnt  urns,  idols,  vases,  tablets,  and  other  articles,  many 
of  them  small  images  and  coins ;  and,  what  is  remarkable,  no 
two  are  alike,  except  in  this  one  particular,  they  all  have  seven 
indentations  upon  them,  symbolical  of  something  mysterious. 

Generally  they  are  rudely  made,  and  some  of  them  indecent, 
but  this  was  peculiar  to  the  worship  of  Peor,  the  favorite  god- 
dess of  the  Moabites.     Perhaps  one  thousand  of  the  larger 


Yxvv.'^ovyJ:^A.■w\^y 


MOABITE   VASE,  WITH    INSCRIPTION. 

articles  bear  inscriptions  in  Greek  or  Phoenician  characters. 
These  characters  appear  to  be  divided  into  four  or  more  sys- 
tems, belonging  to  as  many  ages  and  dialects.  In  addition  to  the 
Greek  alphabet  there  are  several  irregular  letters,  the  meaning 
of  which  has  not  yet  been  determined.  About  one  third  of  the 
characters  are  uniform  in  all  the  systems,  and  identical  with 
those  on  the  famous  Moabite  stone. 


THE   LEVITICAL  CITIES.  421 

We  have  before  us,  belonging  to  this  collection,  an  urn  six- 
teen and  a  half  inches  high  without  the  base,  which  has  been 
broken  off,  and  seven  and  a  half  inches  in  diameter,  found  in  a 
cave  near  Heshbon,  not  far  from  Beth-peor.  It  appears,  so  far 
as  we  are  capable  of  judging,  to  have  been  a  votive  offering, 
probably  filled  with  wine  or  oil,  and  presented  to  the  god  Taad 
— corresponding  to  the  Egyptian  Thoth — the  god  of  letters,  by 
a  person  named  Hasak  or  Hezekiah,  with  the  prayer  that  Taad 
would  remember  and  bless  him,  and  all  the  gods  protect 
him.  It  has  on  it  sixty  raised  characters,  about  two  inches 
long,  arranged  in  five  lines  extending  entirely  round  the 
vase.' 

Abu  Shusheh,  about  four  miles  south-east  of  Ramleh,  has 
lately  been  identified  as  the  ancient  Levitical  city  of  Gezer, 
retaken  from  tlie  Philistines  by  Pharaoh,  King  of  Egypt,  and 
given  to  his  daughter,  Solomon's  wife.  The  boundaries  of  the 
forty-eight  cities  set  apart  for  the  sons  of  Levi  have  long  been 
a  subject  of  controversy.  Last  summer,  in  visiting  this  place, 
ray  attention  was  called  to  two  large  stones  with  inscriptions 
upon  them  in  old  Hebrew  and  Greek  characters ;  the  letters 
were  about  nine  inches  long,  and  deeply  cut  in  the  horizontal 
face  of  the  native  limestone  rock  where  it  cropped  out  of  the 
ground.  According  to  Mr.  Clermont-Ganneau,  and  other 
archaeologists,  the  inscriptions  read,  "  The  limits,  or  boundary, 
of  Gezer,"  and  these  old  land-marks  were  no  doubt  intended 
to  define  the  outer  boundary  of  the  city  suburbs. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  stones  are  no  longer  in  their 
original  position,  the  Turkish  authorities  having  removed  them 
to  Constantinople. 

This  discovery  will  go  far  toward  fixing  the  standard  of  the 
'  This  vase  is  now  in  the  Metropolitan  Museum  of  Art,  New  York. 


422 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


OLD    HEBREW    INSCRIPTIONS. 


Jewish  cubit,  and  in  determining  the  shape  and  extent  of  the 
suburbs  of  the  Levitical  cities. 

The  cities  themselves  being  among  those  taken  from  the 
former  occupants  of  the  country,  were  more  than  likely  of  dif- 
ferent dimensions,  no  two,  perhaps,  alike.  Some  may  have 
been  square,  others  round.  The  limit  of  the  inner  suburb  was 
one  thousand  cubits  from  the  wall  "  round  about ; "  this  may 
have  been  circular.  The  outer  precincts  were  two  thousand 
cubits  beyond  the  inner,  east,  west,  north,  and  south,  or,  accord- 


THE   LEVITICAL    CITIES. 


423 


ing  to  the  Hebrew  text,  "  to  the  east  corner  two  thousand  cu- 
bits." '  So  the  boundary  of  the  outlying  fields  could  not  have 
been  circular,  but  angular.  The  suburbs  did  not  measure  three 
thousand  cubits  in  all  directions ;  only  the  angles  at  the  four 
cardinal  points,  the  sides  being  diagonal.     The  first  thousand 


TLAN  OF  LEVITICAL  CITIES. 


cubits  were  to  be  measured  "  from  the  wall  of  the  city,"  not 
from  the  center  of  it,  the  city  being  "  in  the  midst." 

A  discovery  of  some  interest  has  also  been  made  at  Gaza,  in 
the  old  mosque  of  that  city,  which  was  once  a  Jewish  syna- 

•  Numbers  xxxv,  3-4. 


424  BIBLE  LANDS. 

gogue.  On  one  of  the  marble  columns  of  this  mosque  is  a 
beautifully  executed  model  of  tlie  golden  candlestick  of  the 
Temple.  It  resembles  very  much  the  one  on  the  Arch  of  Titus 
at  Rome ;  only  this  one  is  surrounded  with  a  wreath,  as  if 
trimmed  for  some  festive  occasion,  perhaps  the  feast  of  taber- 
nacles. It  has  the  seven  branches  with  candles  represented  as 
burning  in  the  sockets.  The  knife  of  sacrifice  hangs  from  one 
of  the  branches,  and  some  other  instrument  from  another  branch 
on  the  opposite  side.  The  name  of  Rabbi  Hanna,  son  of  Yo- 
seph — John,  the  son  of  Joseph — in  old  Hebrew,  is  inscribed 
below  on  the  same  column. 

A  few  months  since  a  peasant  man  found  near  Ekron,  iive 
miles  south-west  of  Ramleh,  on  the  great  maritime  Plain  of 
Philistia,  a  stone  seal  about  one  inch  square  on  the  face,  bearing 
a  peculiar  device,  and  which  1  purchased  for  a  trifle,  not  consid- 
ering it  of  any  great  value.  Since  then  many  antiquarians,  to 
whom  impressions  were  sent,  have  pronounced  the  device  an 
image  of  Beelzebub,  the  great  Fly-god,  and  the  only  one  ever 
discovered.  He  is  represented  as  a  man  of  the  Assyrian  type, 
with  short  beard  and  four  wings.  In  his  hands  he  holds  two 
apes  or  monkeys,  denoting,  perhaps,  his  office  as  "  Prince  of 
devils,"  apes  being  sometimes  translated  devils  in  the  Script- 
ures.' Beelzebub  was  the  principal  deity  of  the  Philistines, 
and  is  frequently  referred  to  in  the  New  Testament.  We  are 
also  informed  that  when  Ahaziah,  King  of  Israel,  fell  from  his 
palace  window  in  Samaria  and  was  fatally  injured,  he  sent  to 
this  god  at  Ekron,  to  inquire  whether  he  should  recover  or 
die.  We,  however,  have  never  before  been  able  to  form  a  cor- 
rect idea  of  the  figure  of  this  celebrated  deity.  The  name 
signifies  Fly-god,  or  destroyer  of  flies,  a  generic  term  applicable 
'  Deuteronomy  xxxii,  17. 


IMAGE    OF    BEELZEBUB.  425 

to  all  winged  insects,  as  flies,  gnats,  locusts,  mosquitoes,  and 
the  like,  which  have  always  been  the  plague  of  the  Orient. 

It  has  generally  been  supposed  that  this  god  was  worshiped 
under  the  symbol  of  a  fly,  others  argued  for  the  beetle  or  scara- 
beus ;  but  Beelzebub,  you  will  observe,  was  an  oracular  divinity, 
so  must  have  been  represented  in  the  human  form,  as  man  is 
the  only  creature  endowed  with  the  gift  of  speech. 

And  may  not  this  deity  answer  to  "  the  prince  of  the  power 
of  the  air,"  referred  to  by  St.  Paul  in  his  Epistle  to  the  Ephe- 
eians  ? '     Beelzebub  was  regarded  as  the  god  of  all  the  insects 


BEELZEBUB. 


that  fly  in  the  air,  and  the  ignorant  Philistines  in  their  worship 
sought  to  secure  his  favor  under  the  impression  that  he  only 
could  protect  them  from  the  fearful  plague  of  flies,  locusts,  and 
grasshoppers,  so  common  in  the  East ;  the  visitation  of  which 
was  generally  followed  by  famine  and  pestilence,  translated  in 
some  instances  demon  or  destroyer  in  the  Scriptures.  This 
view  appears  more  rational  than  to  suppose  the  air  we  breathe 
to  be  swarming  with  evil  spirits. 

'  Ephesians  ii,  2 ;  Mark  iii,  22. 

*  This  seal  is  still  in  possession  of  the  author,  who  has  refused  a  large  sum 
offered  for  it  by  the  British  Museum,  it  being  the  only  image  of  Beelzebub  thus 
far  discovered.     It  was  probably  used  for  sealing  the  oracles  of  this  god. 


426  BIBLE   LANDS. 

An  order  was  recently  issued  by  the  Sultan  for  removing- 
the  old  walls  and  dismantling  the  fortifications  of  Jaffa,  In 
cutting  a  gate  through  a  watery  battery  at  an  angle  of  the  sea 
wall  built  by  Yespasian,  and  directly  in  front  of  the  reputed 
house  of  Simon  the  tanner,  the  workmen  came  upon  three  oval- 
shaped  tanners'  vats,  hewn  out  of  the  natural  rock,  and  lined 
with  Koman  cement,  down  very  near  the  sea,  and  similar  in 
every  respect  to  those  in  use  eighteen  centuries  ago.  There  is 
also  a  fresh-water  spring  flowing  from  the  cliff  close  by,  long 
known  as  the  Tanners'  Spring. 

This  discovery,  at  least,  proves  that  the  house  on  the  rocky 
bluff  above,  from  which  steps  lead  down  to  the  vats,  must  have 
belonged  to  some  tanner ;  and,  as  it  is  not  likely  more  than 
one  of  that  trade  would  be  living  in  so  small  a  place  as  Jaffa,, 
this,  in  all  probability,  is  the  identical  spot  where  the  house  of 
Simon  stood,  with  whom  Peter  was  sojourning  when  he  saw 
his  wonderful  vision  and  received  the  servants  of  Cornelius, 
who  came  all  the  way  from  Csesarea  to  have  the  apostle  visit 
their  master  in  that  city.  A  cedar  beam  was  also  found  under 
a  section  of  the  wall,  deeply  imbedded  in  the  sand,  showing 
that  thig  was  probably  the  very  port  where  Solomon  laiided  the 
timber  and  marble  for  his  gorgeous  temple  on  Moriah. 

Another  interesting  discovery  has  just  been  made  by  the 
Palestine  Exploration  Society.  It  will  be  remembered  that, 
after  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  by  Titus,  the  city  was  rebuilt 
by  order  of  the  Emperor  Hadrian,  and  the  name  changed  to 
^lia  Capitolina,  in  honor  of  himself.  This  emperor  also,  to 
commemorate  his  victory  over  the  Jews  and  the  overthrow  of 
their  religion,  erected  a  grand  temple  on  Mount  Moriah,  which 
he  dedicated  to  Jupiter,  placing  therein  a  beautiful  marble 
statue  of  himself. 


HEAD  OF  THE  EMPEROR  HADRIAN. 


42r 


Lately  a  poor  peasant,  digging  among  the  rubbish  in  the  old 
road-bed,  jnst  outside  the  Damascus  gate,  near  the  Tomb  of  the- 
Kings,  came  upon  what  appears  to  be  the  head  of  this  celebrated 
statue.  The  physiognomy  of  Hadrian  is  striking,  and  there  is 
little  difficulty  in  identifying  his  statue  by  the  rather  low  fore- 
head, Roman  nose,  crisp  beard,  curved  eyelids,  stem  look,  and 
curled  mustache,  all  of  wiiich  are  here  clearly  defined.  M. 
Clermont-Ganneau,  and  other  archaeologists,  consider  this  the 


hadriak's  head 

head  of  the  identical  statue  of  the  great  emperor,  which  origin- 
ally stood  in  the  temple  of  Jupiter  Capitolinus,  erected  on  the 
site  of  the  once  magnificent  temple  of  Solomon. 

The  statue  had  been  broken  into  fragments,  its  head  used  as 
a  common  paving-stone,  and  when  found  was  lying  in  the 
highway,  face   downward,  where    for  centuries  it  had  been 


428  BIBLE   LANDS. 

trampled  in  the  dust  by  almost  every  donkey,  camel,  and  pil- 
grim that  entered  the  gates  of  Zion ! 

How  strangely  God  brings  to  naught  the  designs  of  wicked 
men  !  This  emperor  souglit  to  obliterate  all  knowledge  of  the 
true  God  and  his  worship ;  blotted  out  the  very  name  of  the 
iioly  city ;  piled  up  mountains  of  earth  over  the  tomb  of 
■Christ ;  built  pagan  temples  on  Calvary  and  Moriah,  and  set  up 
liis  own  image  in  the  most  sacred  place  to  receive  the  homage 
•due  only  to  God.  All  which  seems  to  have  transpired  but  yes- 
terday in  the  history  of  our  race.  To-day,  in  clearing  away 
the  ruins  of  the  past,  we*  find  the  mutilated  head  of  the  con- 
■queror  of  the  Jews,  with  the  laurel  and  eagle  still  upon  his 
brow  and  the  imperial  expression  in  his  eye,  but  his  power  and 
glory  forever  gone.  To-day  Hadrian  only  lives  in  history  ;  his 
beautiful  tomb  in  Rome  is  the  Castle  of  St.  Angelo  ;  his  mar- 
ble sarcophagus  is  the  baptismal  font  in  St.  Peter's,  and 
Jupiter,  his  favorite  deity,  is  without  a  temple,  priest,  or 
worshiper  on  the  face  of  the  whole  earth  ;  while,  on  the  other 
hand,  for  every  fragment  of  Jehovah's  temple  demolished  by 
this  emperor  a  Christian  church  has  sprung  up  somewhere  in 
the  earth,  and  to-day  millions  of  devout  hearts  crowd  the  courts 
of  the  Lord's  house  in  every  land,  to  join  in  doxologies  of 
praise  to  "  Him  whose  dominion  is  universal,  and  of  whose 
kingdom  there  shall  be  no  end." 

These,  and  other  discoveries  which  are  ahnost  daily  made  in 
the  sites  of  cities  and  places  not  hitherto  identified,  help  very 
much  to  settle  long-disputed  points,  go  far  toward  establishing 
the  inspired  record,  and  add  greatly  to  the  interest  taken  in 
biblical  researches. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

NORTHERN    SYRIA. 

Impressions  on  Leaving  Jerusalem — Old  City  of  Damascus — Turkish  Bath — Great 
Mosque — Baalbec  by  Moonlight — Cedars  of  Lebauon — Ruins  of  Ephesus — 
Temple  oi'  Diana — Classic  Athens — Vestiges  of  Ancient  Greece — Home  again. 

TN  leaving  Jerusalem,  after  a  residence  of  four  years,  we  ex- 
perienced the  saddest  feelings.  It  was  like  parting  with 
some  long-cherished  friend,  and  painful  to  tear  ourselves  awa}'. 
Our  heads  were  continually  turning  and  looking  back  to  catch, 
if  possible,  another  and  still  another  view  of  the  Holy  City. 
Even  when  miles  awa}',  we  found  ourselves  standing  up  in  our 
stirrups,  stretching  our  necks  and  straining  our  eyes  in  hopes  of 
getting  yet  another  glimpse.  And  when,  near  Bethel,  we  saw 
for  the  last  time  the  "Dome  of  the  Rock"  on  the  summit  of 
Moriah,  it  was  like  taking  a  last  look  of  the  old  homestead  or 
of  a  beloved  parent.  Crossing  the  Jordan  at  Damieh,  and  tak- 
ing on  our  route  Jerash,  Bozrah,  Edrei,  and  other  famous  stone 
cities  of  Bashan  and  the  Hauran,  after  many  adventures,  but 
nothing  serious,  we  safely  reached  the  old  city  of  Damascus. 

The  history  of  this  city  dates  back  very  near  the  flood.  It 
is  supposed,  by  some,  to  cover  the  site  of  the  Garden  of  Eden, 
and  to  have  been  founded  by  Uz,  the  great-grandson  of  Koah. 
It  must  have  been  a  place  of  importance  in  the  days  of  Abra- 
ham, whose  steward  was  "Eliezer  of  Damascus,"  and,  according 
to  Josephus,  Abraham  himself  at  one  time  was  a  reigning 
prince  of  this  city.     It  certainly  is  among  the  oldest  cities  on 

our  globe,  and,  what  is  remarkable,  has  flourished  under  every 

431 


•432  BIBLE   LANDS. 

dynasty,  and  is  still  the  largest  city  in  Syria.  BeantifuUy  situ- 
ated on  the  banks  of  the  Abana  and  Pharpar  rivers,  in  the 
midst  of  luxuriant  gardens,  it  may  very  appropriately  be  called 
"  the  pearl  of  the  East." 

Our  first  stroll  was  through  the  crooked  "street  called 
Straight,"  by  the  house  of  Judas,  and  Ananias,  and  out  of  the 
eastern  gate,  where  we  were   shown   the   traditional  site   of 


J^aaman's  house,  and  where  Paul  was  let  down  over  the  wall. 
But  to  me,  the  most  interesting  object  was  the  Great  Mosque, 
eleven  hundred  feet  long  and  eight  hundred  wide — the  largest 
house  of  worship  in  the  world,  except  the  noble  sanctuary  at 
Jerusalem,  originally  a  pagan  temple,  then  a  Christian  church 
dedicated  to  St.  John  the  Baptist,  and  said  to  contain  his  head 
in  a  casket  of  gold — now  a  Mohammedan  mosque.     Over  one 


TURKISH    BATH. 


43» 


of  the  grand  entrances  to  this  temple,  now  closed,  may  still  be- 
seen  the  very  singular  Greek  inscription,  "  Thy  kingdom,  O 
Christ,  is  an  everlasting  kingdom,  and  thy  dominion  endureth 
throughout  all  generations."  This  prophetic  inscription  has. 
stood  here  since  the  earliest  ages  of  Christianity,  and  over  the 
portals  of  Islamism  for  these  twelve  hundred  years. 

Never  having  taken  a  Turkish  bath,  several  of  us  one  morning 
concluded  to  test  this  Oriental  luxury.  On  entering  the  estab- 
lishment, we  were  met  by  two  turbaned  Turks  evaporated  into 


EAST    GATE,   DAMASCUS. 

mere  skin  and  bones,  and  conducted  to  an  elevated  platform' 
where  we  were  requested  to  undress.  From  here  we  were- 
taken  from  apartment  to  apartment,  each  one  hotter  and  hot- 
ter, until  respiration  became  difficult,  and  a  peculiar  sensation 
of  suffocation  came  over  me.  Yery  soon  we  were  ushered  into- 
a  small  oven-shaped  room,  feeling  hot  enough  to  roast  a  man, 
and  stretched  out  on  its  heated  marble  floor,  the  perspiration 
oozing  profusely  from  every  pore,  as  if  the  whole  body  were 
dissolving.     After  this  we  were  drenched,  at  intervals,  with. 


434  BIBLE    LANDS. 

pails  of  hot  water  thrown  over  our  shoulders,  the  steam  filling 
the  rooiTi  and  almost  parboiling  us.  ISText,  in  came  a  gaunt, 
raw-boned  Arab,  looking  as  if  all  commiseration  had  been 
fitewed  out  of  him,  and  with  brush  and  soap-suds  began  scrub- 
bing our  tender,  half-cooked  bodies  at  a  fearful  rate,  fairly 
taking  the  flesh  from  our  bones.  This  process  of  steaming, 
scraping,  scrubbing,  was  kept  up  for  perhaps  half  an  hour; 
when,  blind  from  the  soap  in  our  eyes,  faint  from  the  excess- 
ive heat,  sore  from  the  unmerciful  scouring,  and  provoked 
at  our  own  folly  in  submitting  to  such  vile  treatment,  we 
were  taken  into  another  apartment  and  plunged  into  a  bath 
up  to  our  chins,  hotter,  if  possible,  than  any  thing  we  had 
jet  experienced.  Never  did  mortals  suffer  more  in  the  same 
length  of  time  than  we  poor  wretches  in  that  seething  caldron. 
Taken  from  this  vat,  we  were  wrapped  in  winding  sheets  and 
laid  out  on  marble  slabs  to  cool,  as  if,  sure  enougli,  they 
intended  us  for  immediate  burial ;  and  really,  if  this  process 
had  continued  much  longer,  we  would  soon  have  been  fit  sub- 
jects for  the  tomb.  Finally,  after  more  rubbing,  rolling,  and 
thumping,  we  were  conducted  back  to  the  room  we  first  en- 
tered, stretched  out  on  Turkish  divans,  regaled  with  Turkish 
coffee,  fumigated  with  Turkish  tobacco  until  our  eyes  began  to 
swim  as  in  some  dreamy  state,  from  which  we  were  soon 
aroused  by  our  sharpened  appetites  clamoring  for  something 
more  substantial  than  smoke  and  vapor.  So  off  we  hastened  to 
our  tents,  reaching  them  just  in  time  for  a  good  breakfast, 
thoroughly  satisfied  and  disgusted  with  the  Turkish  bath. 

About  midway  between  this  and  Beirut,  on  the  liigh  plain 
between  the  two  ranges  of  the  Lebanons,  are  the  ruins  of  Baal- 
bec,  in  some  respects  the  sublimest  works  ever  executed  by  the 
genius  of  man.     Nothing  in  Greece,  Rome,  or  Egypt  can  com- 


RUINS   OF   BAALBEC.  437 

pare  witli  them.  Here,  on  a  vast  platform  nine  hundred  feet 
long  and  five  hundred  wide,  standing  thirty  feet  above  the 
plain,  and  supported  by  a  wall  of  immense  stones,  the  largest 
sixty-nine  feet  long,  fifteen  feet  thick,  and  seventeen  feet  wide, 
are  the  remains  of  two  magnificent  temples,  one  dedicated 
to  Baal,  and  the  other  to  Jupiter,  the  most  perfect  ruins  in  the 
world — single  columns  seventy-five  feet  high  and  twenty-one 
feet  in  circumference,  surmounted  by  an  entablature  fifteen 
feet  high,  all  of  exquisite  workmanship.  The  eastern  door-way 
to  the  temple  of  Jupiter  is  forty-two  feet  high  in  the  clear,  and 
twenty-one  feet  wide,  with  massive  pilasters  richly  carved. 
The  key-stone  of  this  portal  weighs  sixty  tons,  and  on  it  is 
sculptured  the  symbol  of  Jupiter ;  power  and  dominion — au 
eagle  soaring  among  the  stars,  grasping  in  his  talons  the  thun- 
derbolts of  Jove.  The  eagle  on  the  standard  of  our  country 
was  taken  from  this  Roman  symbol,  and  I  suppose  but  for 
this  sculpture  over  the  entrance  to  the  temple  of  Jupiter  at 
Baalbec  we  never  would  have  had  any  spread-eagle  speeches 
in  America.  Our  tents  were  pitched  in  the  very  center  of  this 
grand  ruin,  the  history  of  which  is  lost  in  the  misty  past,  and 
we  were  permitted  to  eat  and  sleep  and  dream  in  this  gorgeous 
temple  of  the  sun.  The  night  was  clear  and  warm,  and  we 
enjoyed  the  rare  privilege  of  seeing  Baalbec  by  moonlight. 
The  effect  was  very  fine ;  our  own  shadows  seemed  to  people 
anew  the  place,  and  as  we  wandered  from  temple  to  temple 
over  broken  columns  and  crumbling  walls  we  could  almost 
fancy  we  saw  the  old  fire- worshipers  in  their  midnight  orgies 
again. 

In  visiting  the  cedars  of  Lebanon  from  Baalbec,  we  crossed 
the  broad  rich  plain  of  Bnka'a,  nearly  four  thousand  feet  above 
the  ocean  level,  and  in  two  hours  began  ascending  the  lower 


438 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


CEDARS    OF    LEBANON. 


spurs  of  the  mountain,  and  in  two  hours  more  were  at  'Ain 
'Ata,  where  we  encamped  for  the  night.  After  pitching  our 
tents  we  retired  early,  hoping  to  enjoy  a  comfortable  night's 
rest ;  but  about  midnight  a  furious  hurricane  suddenly  struck 
our  camp,  blowing  down  our  tents  and  leaving  us  exposed  to 
the  peltings  of  the  pitiless  storm.  The  next  morning,  half 
frozen,  we  continued  our  journey,  and  after  three  hours'  hard 


CEDARS  OF  LEBANON.  439 

climbing  by  a  rocky,  tortuous  path  over  fields  of  snow  and  the 
highest  ranges  of  Lebanon,  when  near  the  summit  we  encoun- 
tered another  fearful  storm  of  wind,  rain,  and  hail.  The  thun- 
der shook  the  very  mountain  beneath  us,  bringing  down  great 
avalanches  across  our  path.  The  lightnings  shot  forth  their 
fiery  fangs  like  enormous  serpents.  The  rain  fell  in  torrents. 
Our  horses  refused  to  face  the  storm,  and  all  we  could  do  was 
to  turn  our  backs  lo  the  blast  and  wait  until  it  had  spent  its 
fury.  Cold,  wet,  hungry,  almost  dead,  we  reached  the  famous 
cedars,  so  celebrated  in  sacred  history,  about  nightfall,  greatly 
enjoying  the  dinner  and  warm  fire  that  awaited  our  arrival. 

This  grove  covers  a  knoll  six  thousand  three  hundred  feet 
above  the  sea,  at  the  head  of  the  Kadisha  River,  on  the  verge 
of  perpetual  snow ;  thus  crowning  witli  glory  the  summit  of 
the  vegetable  world  I  There  are  not  more  than  four  hundred 
trees  in  tliis  collection,  mostly  small ;  the  twelve  largest,  known 
as  the  twelve  patriarchs,  are  from  thirty  to  forty  feet  in  circum- 
ference, and  about  one  hundred  feet  high.  Other  groves  have 
recently  been  discovered  to  the  north  and  south,  one  back  of 
Sidon,  very  beautiful ;  and  no  doubt  the  whole  mountain,  at 
one  time,  was  covered  with  these  goodly  trees.  But  Hiram's 
thirty  thousand  men,  and  the  ravages  of  three  thousand  years, 
have  made  sad  havoc  among  them,  and  the  wonder  is  that  any 
remain  to  this  day.  The  wood  is  of  a  close-grained,  firm  text- 
ure, very  durable,  and  in  appearance  resembles  our  white-pine. 
Anciently  it  was  used  only  by  royalty  and  for  religious  pur- 
poses. The  great  image  of  Diana,  at  Ephesus,  and  the  oldest 
idol  in  Egypt,  were  of  cedar.  The  palace  of  King  David 
was  "a  house  of  cedar,"  and  the  wood-work  of  the  grand 
temples  of  Solomon,  Apollo,  and  Diana  were  of  the  same 
material. 


440 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


These  trees  are  called  in  the  Scriptures,  "  The  trees  of  the 
Lord,  .  .  .  which  he  hath  planted," '  and  they  belong  exclu- 
sively to  Lebanon — are  indigenous  to  no  other  part  of  the 
world.    "  No  other  tree  was  like  unto  them  for  beauty."    And 


^'■^fiX^. 


ItlVER   OK   ADONIS. 


in  the  poetic  language  of  Ezekiel,  "  All  the  trees  of  Eden,  that 
were  in  the  garden  of  God,  envied"  them."  Though  some- 
what shattered  with  age,  they  still  spread  wide  their  fragrant 


'  Psalm  civ,  16. 


*  Ezekiel  xxxi,  9. 


RIVER    OF  ADONIS. 


441 


^branches,  and  run  out  their  roots  far  and  deep,  taking  hold  of 
the  very  foundation  of  the  mountain,  so  that  the  storms  of 
many  centuries  have  failed  to  destroy  them :  beautifully  sym- 
bolizing the  Christian  rooted  and  grounded  in  Christ,  whom 
no  storm  can  uproot.  "  The  righteous  shall  flourish  like  the 
palm-tree ;  he  shall  grow  Hke  a  cedar  in  Lebanon."  ' 

The  solitude  of  this  forest  is  oppressive ;  and  the  somber 
shade  cast  by  the  evergreen  foliage,  the  sighing  of  the  winds 
■through  the  gnarled  branches,  and  the  associations  awakened 


NATURAL  BRIDGE. 


"by  the  venerable  appearance  of  these  trees,  made  us  feel  more 
■solemn  than  joyous ;  and  after  a  few  hours'  rest  we  turned  our 
faces  westward,  first  down  the  valley  of  the  Kadisha,  then  over 
a  succession  of  rocky  ridges,  through  the  grandest  scenery, 
but  over  the  roughest  roads,  ever  traveled  by  horsemen. 

Passing  the  river  Adonis,  near  the  fabled  scene  of  that 
young  man's  death  and  frequent  interviews  with  Yenus — a 
wild,  picturesque  gorge,  with  numerous  fountains  and  water- 

'  Psalm  xcii,  12. 


442 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


falls — fit  temple  for  Cupid — and  crossing  a  deep  cliasm  on  a 
natural  bridge,  one  hundred  and  sixty-three  feet  long,  eighty 
feet  high,  by  about  one  hundred  and  twenty  wide — a  most 
romantic  spot,  and  a  wonderful  freak  of  nature,  we,  on  the 
second  day,  began  the  ascent  of  another  mountain  range 
near  the  coast,  and  as  we  were  wondering  in  our  own  minds 
whether  we  should  ever  reach  its  craggy  summit,  lo,  all  at  once 
the  sea,  the  blue,  tideless  Mediterranean  Sea,  burst  upon  our 


TOMB    OF   KINGSLEY. 


vision !  and  in  a  few  houi*8  we  were  in  Beirut,  the  end  of  our 
journey  in  Palestine,  feeling  very  thankful  for  our  safe  pas- 
sage of  the  Lebanons. 

In  the  Prussian  Cemetery,  close  by  the  road-side,  as  you 
enter  Beirut,  a  gray  granite  obehsk  marks  the  tomb  of  the 
lamented  Bishop  Kingsley,  who  died  in  this  city  April  6, 18Y0, 
on  his  tour  round  the  world.  The  monument  was  shipped 
from  New  York  during  the  author's  residence  in  Palestine,  and 


'  BEIRUT.  443 

Stands  as  a  beautiful  memorial  over  the  grave  of  the  first  Meth- 
odist Bishop  to  circumnavigate  the  globe. 

Beirut  is  the  most  flourishing  commercial  city  in  Syria,  re- 
minding one  very  much  of  an  American  city.  It  is  beautifully 
situated  on  the  site  of  ancient  Berytus,  at  the  base  of  the 
coast  range  of  the  Lebanon  Mountains.  Three  lines  of  mail 
steamers  run  regularly  from  here  to  Europe,  and  diligences  to 
Damascus  daily,  over  the  finest  macadamized  road  in  the  East. 

The  American  Mission  established  here  in  1823  has  contrib- 
uted more  than  any  other  agency  to  the  recent  rapid  growth  of 
this  city,  which  now  contains  a  population  of  80,000.  The 
Syrian  Protestant  College  established  by  the  Legislature  of  Xew 
York  in  1863  occupies  a  commanding  position  on  the  promon- 
tory about  a  mile  west  of  the  city.  It  was  erected  and  is  sup- 
ported by  the  liberal  voluntary  contributions  of  Christian  gen- 
tlemen in  America  and  England ;  and  under  the  management 
of  Revs.  D.  Bliss,  D.  D.,  Vandyck,  Post,  and  other  eflBcieut  pro- 
fessors, has  given  a  great  impulse  to  education  and  civilization  in 
Syria. 

There  are  also  here  a  Prussian  Hospital,  founded  and  sup- 
ported by  the  Knights  of  St.  John,  for  the  relief  of  suffering 
pilgrims ;  and  an  Institution  of  Prussian  Deaconesses,  where 
native  orphan  girls,  without  charge,  are  educated,  boarded, 
clothed,  and  taught  to  cook,  sew  and  keep  house.  These  institu- 
tions are  models  of  order,  neatness  and  cleanliness. 

This  city  was  probably  founded  by  the  Phoenicians,  though 
little  is  known  of  its  early  history.  It  was  celebrated  as  a  seat 
of  learning  under  the  Greeks  and  Romans.  Herod  Agrippa 
adorned  it  with  splendid  colonnades,  and  an  amphitheatre  for 
gladiatorial  combats,  in  which  Titus,  after  the  fall  of  Jerusalem, 
celebrated  the  birthday  of  his  father,  Vespasian,  by  throwing 


444  BIBLE    LANDS. 

thousands  of  captive  Jews  to  the  wild  beasts.  Among  her  an- 
cient remains,  that  which  will  interest  the  antiquarian  most  is 
■an  old  Roman  aqueduct  that  supplied  the  city  with  water,  over 
the  river  Beirut.  It  consists  of  a  series  of  lofty  stone  arches, 
the  highest  tier  being  160  feet  above  the  river-bed,  and  twenty 
feet  wide.  The  water  was  conveyed  about  eight  miles  through 
stone  tubes,  then  over  this  aqueduct,  and  in  one  place  through  a 
tunnel  cut  in  the  solid  rock ;  showing  great  labor  and  engineer- 
ing skill. 

On  the  9th  of  July,  551  A.  D.,  Beirut  was  entirely  destroyed 
by  an  earthquake,  burying  most  of  the  population  beneath  the 
Tuins.  The  shock  is  described  as  fearful!  Enormous  chasms 
were  opened  in  the  earth,  huge  masses  were  thrown  into  the  air ; 
the  sea  was  greatly  disturbed,  the  very  mountains  torn  from  their 
■firm  foundations,  and  one  cast  into  the  sea,  forming  the  present 
harbor  of  Butrone.  Traces  of  this  upheaval  and  dreadful 
•calamity  may  still  be  seen  in  and  around  the  city.  Dig  down 
anywhere  within  the  walls  of  ancient  Berytus,  and  you  will 
come  upon  the  remains  of  grand  palaces,  theatres,  porticos  and 
other  edifices.  Recently  a  bronze  statuette  was  found  of  a 
female  figure,  crowned  with  a  crescent.  One  hand  rests  upon  an 
oar,  with  an  inscription,  "  To  the  Sidonians,"  in  Phoenician 
characters.  It  is  supposed  to  represent  the  goddess  Astarte. 
Portions  of  the  city  must  have  been  submerged,  as  many  of  these 
ruins  may  be  seen  through  the  clear  waters  lying  at  the 
bottom  of  the  harbor.  In  1840  the  governor  of  Beirut  built  a 
breakwater  to  protect  the  harbor,  entirely  of  large  granite 
columns  taken  from  the  sea  in  front  of  the  city. 

Six  miles  north  of  Beirut,  Nahr-el  Kelb,  or  Dog  river,  empties 
into  the  sea,  a  wild,  romantic  stream,  gushing  out  of  mysterious 
caverns  under  the  snowy  peaks  of  Lebanon.  The  chasm  through 


MONUMENTAL   TABLETS.  44ft 

•which  this  river  flows  afforded  the  easiest  passage  of  the  moun- 
tains, and  for  many  centuries  was  the  great  highway  for  commerce 
and  travel.  Through  this  pass  the  Egyptians,  Assyrians, 
Greeks,  and  Romans  marched  their  countless  hosts,  long  before 
the  advent  of  Christ,  and  have  left  enduring  records  of  their 
power,  in  monumental  tablets  cut  in  the  living  stone,  recording 
their  achievements.  About  a  dozen  of  these  tablets,  carved  on 
the  face  of  the  rock,  may  still  be  seen  above  the  old  road,  near 
the  mouth  of  Dog  river;  some  much  defaced,  others  in  good 
preservation.  They  look  as  if  set  in  a  frame,  the  rock  being 
scarped  away,  leaving  a  cornice  above,  with  mouldings  running 
down  the  sides.  They  are  of  different  shapes,  some  square  at 
the  top,  others  round.  The  panels  are  sunken,  and  of  different 
«izes,  but  all  large  enough  to  contain  the  full-length  figure  of 
a  person. 

Three  of  these  tablets  are  Egyptian,  bearing  the  cartouche  of 
Rameses  II.,  tiie  Sesostris  of  the  Greeks.  They  refer  to  dif- 
ferent campaigns  of  this  monarch,  and  are  dedicated  to  Ra, 
Amnion,  and  Phtah,  the  three  principal  deities  of  the  old 
Egyptians,  dating  back  to  the  invasion  of  Asia  by  Rameses  the 
•Great,  1351  B.C.  Herodotus  tells  us  that  Sesostris,  in  his  ex- 
pedition to  Asia,  did  leave  behind  him  stelae  and  figures  as  mon- 
uments of  his  exploits,  and  that  he  himself  had  seen  some  of 
them  in  Syria.  May  not  these  be  the  tablets  and  figures  re- 
ferred to  by  the  historian  ? 

Six  of  the  sculptures  are  Assyrian ;  the  figures  on  them  well 
preserved,  representing  the  king  standing  with  right  hand  up- 
lifted, and  the  left  folded  across  his  breast  grasping  a  mace.  The 
background  and  dress  are  covered  with  cuniform  inscriptions, 
very  dim,  however,  from  age.  Some  of  these  tablets  refer  to  the 
invasion  of  Sennacherib,  whose  army  was  smitten  by  the  angel  of 


446  BIBLE    LANDS. 

the  Lord,  on  the  plain  of  Philistia ;  others,  though  it  is  difficult 
to  fix  the  dates,  relate  to  the  expeditions  of  Tiglath-pileser,  Shal- 
maneser,  Sargon  and  other  Assyrian  kings,  whose  conquests  ex- 
tended to  the  Great  Sea.  Two  of  the  inscriptions  are  Greek — 
very  ancient  and  almost  illegible. 

"  The  epoch  of  Sesostris,"  says  Dr.  Robinson,  "  covered  the 
last  half  of  the  fourteenth  century  B.  C,  and  was  three  centuries 
earlier  than  the  accession  of  King  David  to  the  throne  of  Israel- 
Sennacherib  is  supposed  to  have  ascended  the  throne  of  Assyria 
in  703  B.  C.  Between  the  tablets  of  Sesostris,  the  former  con- 
queror, and  those  of  the  latter,  therefore,  there  intervened  a  period 
of  not  less  than  six  centuries.  And  looking  back  from  our  day^ 
these  Assyrian  tablets  have  continued  to  commemorate  the  pro- 
gress of  the  Assyrian  hosts  for  more  than  twenty-five  centuries ;. 
while  those  of  Egypt  have  celebrated  the  prowess  of  Sesostris 
for  thirty-one  centuries.  They  reach  back  to  hoary  antiquity^ 
even  to  the  earliest  days  of  the  judges  of  Israel." 

Other  sculptures  have  been  found  higher  up  among  the  moun- 
tains, and  within  the  last  year  two  were  discovered  in  a  narrow 
valley  near  Hurmul,  eighteen  feet  long  by  eight  feet  high.. 
They  are  on  opposite  sides  of  a  rocky  gorge,  facing  each  other, 
with  the  figure  of  Xebuchadnezzar,  giving  his  name  and  titles  in 
full.  It  was  near  Hurmul,  at  Riblah,  that  Pharaoh-Necho 
encamped  on  his  expedition  against  the  Assyrians,  when  he  slew 
Josiah,  the  last  good  king  of  Judah,  at  Megiddo.^  Here  also- 
Nebuchadnezzar  encamped  while  his  army  captured  Jerusalem, 
and  it  was  here  the  cruel  King  of  Babylon  put  out  the  eyes  of 
King  Zedekiah,  then  bound  him  with  fetters  of  brass,  and 
carried  him  to  Babylon.^ 

How  strange,  after  the  lapse  of  so  many  centuries,  we  should! 

*  2  Kings  xxiii,  29.  *  2  Kings  xxv,  7. 


ANCIENT  SIDON.  447 

find  here  written  on  the  enduring  rocks  a  corroboration  of  all 
these  events ! 

A  day's  ride  on  horseback  along  the  coast  south  of  Beirut 
brings  us  to  Sidon,  "  Mother  of  all  the  Phoenicians,"  now  hoary 
with  age,  sitting  by  the  sea,  as  if  weeping  over  her  faded  beauty 
and  the  loss  of  her  youthful  vigor.  Sidon,  says  Dr.  Porter,  is 
not  only  the  most  ancient  city  of  Phoenicia,  but  one  of  the  most 
ancient  cities  in  the  world,  being  mentioned  in  the  book  of  Gen- 
esis along  with  Gaza,  Sodom  and  Gomorrah.  According  to 
Josephus,  it  was  founded  by  Sidon,  the  eldest  son  of  Canaan, 
and  great-grandson  of  Xoah.  When  the  Israelites  entered 
Canaan  it  had  already  become  famous  as  "Great  Zidon."* 

Homer  celebrates  this  city  and  her  mariners  in  the  "  Iliad." 
The  beautifully  embroidered  robes  worn  by  Helen  were  brought 
from  here  by  Paris,  and  the  richly  wrought  votive  offering  of  the 
Trojans  to  Minerva  was  the  work  of  Sidon's  daughters.  Strabo 
-also  celebrates  the  Sidonians  for  excelling  in  architecture,  astron- 
omy, navigation  and  philosophy.  Sidon  was  first  conquered  by 
Shalmaneser,  720  B.  C.  Afterwards  it  was  taken  by  Alexander 
the  Great.  Paul  landed  here  on  his  way  to  Rome,  but  since  the 
Crusades  its  history  does  not  contain  a  single  incident  worthy  of 
notice. 

The  most  interesting  remains  of  ancient  Sidon  yet  discovered 
have  been  among  the  rock-hewn  tombs  everywhere  to  be  found 
on  the  plain  and  in  the  neighboring  hills.  Some  of  these  tombs 
consist  of  several  chambers  communicating  with  each  other. 
Many  of  them  are  occupied  as  dwellings  by  the  natives,  and  one 
appeared  to  have  been  used  for  a  church  :  so  we  here  literally 
find  "  the  living  among  the  dead."  In  some,  beautiful  sarcophagi 
were  found  ;  in  others  various  articles  in  glass,  pottery,  and  even 

'Joshua  xix,  28. 


448  BIBLE    LANDS. 

gold.  A  few  years  since  several  copper  or  bronze  boxes  were 
dug  up,  containing  thousands  of  old  coins  of  the  purest  gold, 
bearing  either  the  image  and  superscription  of  Philip  of  Mace- 
don  or  of  his  son,  Alexander  the  Great,  and  valued,  it  is  said,  at 
$200,000.  We  carefully  examined  some  of  these  coins,  and 
found  them,  in  their  artistic  execution,  equal  if  not  superior  to 
any  issued  by  our  mint.  As  none  of  them  were  of  a  later  date 
than  Alexander,  they  probably  were  a  part  of  his  royal  treasure, 
and  concealed  here  by  himself  or  some  of  his  officers  at  the  time 
he  occupied  Sidon  during  his  invasion  of  Asia,  332  B.  C. 

But  a  still  more  valuable  discovery  was  made  on  the  20th  of 
January,  1855,  beneath  the  ruins  of  a  Pagan  temple  in  the  old 
cemetery  of  Sidon.  It  was  an  ancient  sarcophagus  belonging  to 
one  of  Sidon's  famous  kings,  with  one  of  the  oldest  if  not  the 
oldest  Phoenician  inscription  yet  recovered  carved  upon  its  lid^ 
Our  engraving  gives  a  very  good  idea  of  this  rare  relic.  It  is 
seven  feet  long  by  four  feet  wide,  resembling  very  much  an 
i^yptian  mummy  case.  The  material  is  blue-black  basalt, 
intensely  hard,  and  highly  polished.  The  inscription  of  twenty- 
two  lines  is  in  perfect  preservation,  and  as  easily  read  as  the  day 
it  was  cut.  Scholars  differ  in  their  translation  of  the  inscription,, 
but  the  version  most  generally  received  is  that  of  the  French, 
which  reads  thus : 

TRANSLATION  OF  THE   INSCRIPTION. 

"  In  the  month  of  Bui,  in  the  fourteenth  of  my  reign.  King 
Ashmunazer,  the  King  of  the  Sidonians,  spake,  saying,  I  am 
snatched  away  before  my  time,  like  the  flowing  of  a  river.  Then 
I  have  made  a  house  for  my  funeral  resting-place,  and  am  lying 
in  this  sarcophagus,  and  in  this  sepulchre,  the  place  which  I  have 
built.     My  prohibition  to  every  royal  person,  and  to  every  man. 


BURIED   TREASURES.  449" 

not  to  open  my  sepulchre,  and  not  to  seek  with  me  treasures — 


SABCOPHA6US   OF  ASHMUNAZEB. 

for  there  are  no  treasures  with  me — nor  to  take  away  the  sarco- 
phagus of  my  funeral  couch,  nor  to  transfer  me  with  my  funeral 


450  BIBLE    LANDS. 

couch  upon  the  couch  of  another.  And  if  any  man  command  to 
do  so,  listen  not  to  their  opinion,  because  every  royal  person,  and 
every  man  who  shall  open  this  funeral  couch,  or  who  shall  take 
away  the  sarcophagus  of  this  funeral  couch,  or  who  shall  transfer 
me  with  the  funeral  couch,  he  shall  have  no  funeral  with  the 
<iead,  nor  be  buried  in  a  sepulchre,  nor  leave  behind  him  son  or 
posterity;  and  the  holy  gods,  with  the  king  that  shall  rule  over 
them,  shall  cut  off  that  royal  person,  and  that  man  who  has 
opened  my  couch,  or  who  has  removed  this  sarcophagus ;  and  so 
also  the  posterity  of  that  royal  person  or  of  that  man,  whoever 
he  be;  nor  shall  his  root  be  planted  downward  nor  his  fruit 
spring  upward,  and  he  shall  be  accursed  among  those  living  under 
the  sun,  because  I  am  to  be  pitied — snatched  away  before  my 
time,  like  a  flowing  river. 

"  Then  I  have  made  this  edifice  for  my  funeral  resting-place, 
for  I  am  Ashmunazer,  King  of  the  Sidonians,  son  of  Tabnith, 
King  of  the  Sidonians,  grandson  of  Ashmunazer,  King  of  the 
Sidonians,  and  my  mother,  Immiastoreth,  priestess  of  Astarte, 
our  sovereign  queen,  daughter  of  King  Ashmunazer,  King  of  the 
Sidonians.  It  is  we  who  have  built  this  temple  of  the  gods  in 
Sidon  by  the  sea,  and  the  heavenly  powers  have  rendered  Astarte 
favorable.  And  it  is  we  who  have  erected  the  temple  to  Esmuno 
and  the  sanctuary  of  Ene  Dalil  in  the  mountains.  The  heavenly 
powers  have  established  me  on  the  throne.  And  it  is  we  who 
have  built  the  temples  to  the  gods  of  the  Sidonians  in  Sidon  by 
the  sea :  the  temple  of  Baal-Sidon,  and  the  temple  of  Astarte, 
the  glory  of  Baal,  lord  of  kings,  who  bestowed  on  us  Dor  and 
Joppa,  and  ample  corn-lands  which  are  at  the  root  of  Dan. 
Extending  the  power  which  I  have  founded,  they  added  them  to 
the  bounds  of  the  land,  establishing  them  to  the  Sidonians  for- 
ever. 


LADY     HESTER    STANHOPE.  451 

"My  prohibition  upon  every  royal  person,  and  upon  every 
man  who  shall  open  me,  or  uncover  me,  or  shall  transfer  me 
witli  the  funeral  couch,  or  take  away  the  sarcophagus  of  my 
funeral  couch,  lest  the  holy  gods  desert  them,  and  cut  off  that 
royal  person,  or  that  man,  whoever  he  may  be,  and  their  pos- 
terity forever." 

As  no  dates  are  given,  we  are  at  a  loss  in  determining  the 
exact  age  of  this  monument.  But,  as  there  is  no  evidence  that 
the  "  ample  corn-lands  at  the  root  of  Dan  "  ever  belonge<l  to  the 
King  of  Sidon  after  the  conquest  of  Laish  under  the  Judges,^ 
it  is  probably  the  oldest  Phoenician  record  yet  discovered,  dating 
back  to  the  eleventh  century  B.  C. 

As  Napoleon  III.  had  this  royal  sarcophagus  removed  to  Paris 
and  placed  in  the  Museum  of  the  Louvre,  the  maledictions 
invoked  by  Ashmunazer  upon  whomsoever  shouki  disturb  his 
tomb  must  have  fallen  on  the  head  of  Louis  Napoleon  and  his 
posterity.  Can  this  be  the  cause  of  the  late  emperor's  downfall, 
and  the  untimely  death  of  his  only  son  ? 

LADY    HESTER   STANHOPE. 

In  the  garden  of  the  old  convent  of  Mar  Elias,  perched  on  the 
sunmiit  of  a  rocky  spur  of  Lebanon,  overlooking  the  sea,  and 
about  eight  miles  Ixack  of  Sidon,  may  be  seen  the  huml)le  tomb 
— now  almost  obliterated — of  Lady  Hester  Stanhope,  who  died 
and  was  buried  in  this  lonely  spot,  on  Sunday,  June  23d,  1839. 
A  volume  might  easily  be  written  on  the  life  and  adventures  of 
this  beautiful,  talented,  but  eccentric  woman.  She  was  the  eldest 
daughter  of  Lord  Stanhope,  and  niece  of  William  Pitt,  second 
son  of  the  celebrated  Earl  of  Chatham,  whom  she  served  as  pri- 
vate secretary,  sharing  in  all  his  confidences.     After  the  death 

'  Jud<;es  xviii,  27. 


452  BIBLE     LANDS. 

of  her  uncle  this  accomplished  lady  visited  the  different  countries 
of  Europe,  and  finally  left  her  native  land  for  Syria,  taking  up 
her  abode  among  the  wild  Arabs  of  the  desert.  No  satisfactory 
reason  has  been  given  for  this  strange  movement  on  the  part  of 
this  highly  educated  and  aristocratic  lady.  Some  think  it  was 
the  disgust  of  her  noble  nature  for  the  intrigues  of  court  life. 
Others,  that  it  was  a  romantic  passion  for  adventure  and  perfect 
freedom  from  the  conventionalism  of  London  society,  influenced, 
also,  by  the  impression  that  a  great  destiny  awaited  her  in  the 
East.  It,  however^  more  than  likely  arose  from  disappointed 
aifection.  She  greatly  admired,  and  it  is  said  was  engaged  to  be 
married  to  Sir  John  Moore,  one  of  the  bravest  generals  in  the 
English  army,  who  fell  in  Spain,  during  the  wars  of  Napoleon, 
in  1809.  This  may  account  for  the  fact  that  she  never  married, 
spurning  imperiously  all  advances  on  the  subject. 

The  Pasha  of  Sidon  conveyed  to  her  the  old  deserted  convent 
of  Elijah,  high  up  on  Lebanon,  which  she  greatly  enlarged  and 
beautified,  enclosing  it  with  walls,  giving  it  the  appearance  of  a 
strongly  fortified  castle.  Her  wealth,  which  she  distributed  with 
a  liberal  hand,  made  her  many  friends,  and  enabled  her  at  least 
to  keep  up  the  appearance  of  royalty.  Her  palace  was  crowded 
with  servants  and  soldiers,  and  when  she  appeared  in  public  was 
always  attended  by  a  strong  body-guard,  impressing  the  natives 
with  her  great  wealth  and  power. 

Adopting  the  habits  of  the  Arabs  among  whom  she  lived,  her 
manner  of  life  and  romantic  style  gave  her  unbounded  influence 
over  the  whole  land,  so  that  she  was  virtually  queen  of  Palmyra, 
and  as  famous  among  the  desert  tribes  as  Zenobia  of  old.  Her 
religion  was  a  mysticism,  or  a  mixture  of  Christianity  and  Ori- 
ental superstition.  She  was  a  firm  believer  in  astrology,  and 
nightly  consulted  the  stars  in  reference  to  coming  events.     She 


LADY    STANHOPE.  453 

held  that  we  all  are  children  of  the  celestial  body  presiding  at  the 
time  of  our  birth — that  the  stars  exert  a  fortunate  or  malignant 
influence  over  our  destiny,  and  that  this  influence  may  be  deter- 
mined by  the  expression  of  the  eye,  or  may  be  seen  in  the  feat- 
ures or  written  on  the  brow.  She  also  had  some  strange  ideas 
in  reference  to  the  temporal  reign  of  Christ — and  for  fourteen 
years  kept  two  beautiful  Arab  steeds  in  her  stables,  one  for  Christ, 
the  other  for  herself,  on  which  to  ride  into  Jerusalem  when  the 
Messiah  came  to  set  up  his  kingdom  on  earth. 

For  nearly  thirty  years  this  highly  cultured  woman  led  this 
romantic  life,  self-exiled  from  her  home  and  all  her  family. 
Among  these  cliffs,  like  an  eagle  in  her  nest,  she  lived,  died,  and 
was  buried  alone  in  her  glory,  none  but  a  few  servants  being 
present  at  her  funeral,  the  greater  part  of  her  household  having 
robbed  and  deserted  her  during  her  last  illness.  And  how  sin- 
gular the  coincidence  connected  with  her  death  and  that  of  her 
early  love.  Both  died  in  foreign  lands,  but  far  removed  from 
each  other.  Both  were  buried  by  strangers,  in  the  gloom  of  mid- 
night ;  and  both  were  laid  to  rest  wrapped  in  the  folds  of  their 
national  flag,  no  relative  being  present  to  drop  a  tear  upon  their 
graves. 

Dr.  W.  M.  Thomson,  long  a  missionary  in  Syria,  and  who 
officiated  at  her  burial,  says  of  Lady  Stanhope :  "  She  was  mag- 
nificently unique.  Xow  riding  at  the  head  of  wild  Arabs,  queen 
of  the  desert,  on  a  visit  to  Palmyra;  now  intriguing  with  mad 
pashas  and  vulgar  emeers ;  at  one  time  treating  with  contempt 
consuls,  generals  and  nobles ;  at  another  bidding  defiance  to  law, 
and  thrashing  the  officers  sent  to  her  lodge ;  to-day  charitable 
and  kind  to  the  poor;  to-morrow  oppressive  and  selfish  in  the 
extreme.  Such  was  Lady  Hester  in  her  mountain  home  on 
Lebanon.     I  should  like  to  read  the  long,  dark,  interior  life 


454  BIBLE     LANDS. 

of  such  a  being,  but  not  to  live  it.  Alas !  she  must  have  drained 
to  the  dregs  many  a  bitter  cup.  Her  sturdy  spirit  here  fought 
out  all  alone  a  thousand  desperate  battles,  and  lost  them  all. 
What  a  death  I  Without  a  friend,  male  or  female — alone,  on  the 
top  of  this  bleak  mountain,  her  lamp  of  life  grew  dimmer  and 
more  dim,  until  it  went  quite  out  in  hopeless,  rayless  night. 
Such  was  the  end  of  the  once  gay  and  brilliant  niece  of  Pitt,  the 
master  spirit  of  Europe.  Will  such  an  end  pay  for  such  a  life? 
Poor  wandering  star,  struck  from  the  bright  galaxy  of  England's 
happy  daughters  to  fall  and  expire  on  this  solitary  summit  of 
Lebanon !  I  drop  a  tear  upon  thy  lonely  grave,  which,  living, 
thy  proud  spirit  would  have  scorned." 


PART  IV. 
ASIA    MINOE. 

"  What  thou  seest,  write  in  a  book,  and  send  it  unto  the  seven  churches  which 
are  in  Asia."  Rev.  i,  11. 


CHAPTER  I. 

ANCIENT   ANATOLIA. 

The  Levant — Ancient  Splendor — Present  Desolate  Condition — Natural  Resources 
— Scene  of  St.  Paul's  Labors — Fathers  of  the  Church — Ignatius — Polycarp — 
•Chrysostom — Turkish  Rule — Extinct  Nations — Ruined  Cities — Knowledge 
and  Skill  of  the  Ancients — Lost  Arts — Process  of  Moving  great  Stones — Con- 
stantinople— The  Sublime  Porte — Church  of  St.  Sophia. 

ASIA  MINOR,  anciently  known  as  Anatolia,  or  the  Levant, 
applies  to  the  peninsula  of  Western  Asia  lying  between 
the  Black  Sea  and  the  Mediterranean,  and  extending  from  the 
river  Euphrates,  on  the  east,  to  the  Grecian  Archipelago,  on  the 
west. 

The  term  Asia  Minor  was  not  given  to  this  portion  of  the 
Eastern  Continent  for  some  centuries  after  the  Christian  era,  so 
those  passages  in  the  New  Testament  where  the  word  Asia 
occurs  are  to  be  understood  as  referring  not  to  Asia  proper,  but 
to  this  peninsula,  which  was  the  field  first  cultivated  among  the 
Gentiles,  by  the  apostles  and  disciples  of  Christ.  Here  Paul 
spent  most  of  his  ministry,  planting  and  establishing  churches  in 
Colossse,  Lystra,  Iconium,  Derbe  and  many  other  cities;  here 
he  first  met  with  Timothy,  and  three  of  his  epistles  are  ad- 
dressed to  the  Christian  churches  of  Asia  Minor.  This  also  was 
the  scene  of  the  effective  labors  of  Ignatius,  one  of  the  apostoli- 
cal fathers,  and  worthy  successor  of  St.  Paul.  He  is  supposed 
by  some  to  be  the  child  whom  Christ  took  in  his  arms,^  and, 
•with     Polycarp,    was     a     disciple    of    St.    John ;    afterward 

'  Mark  ix.  36. 

467 


468  BIBLE    LANDS. 

bishop  of  Antioch,  and  finally  taken  prisoner  to  Rome  by  order 
of  Trajan,  and  thrown  to  the  wild  beasts  in  the  Colosseum, 
about  115  A.  D.  The  saintly  Polycarp  was  a  native  of  this 
country,  and  here  suffered  martyrdom.  And  Chrysostom,  the 
golden-mouthed  pulpit  orator,  and  patriarch  of  Constantinople, 
one  of  the  most  learned,  orthodox,  and  eloquent  ministers  in  the 
primitive  church,  died  here  in  exile,  407  A.  T>. 

This  peninsula,  forming,  as  it  were,  a  bridge  between  Asia 
and  Europe,  has  been  the  great  highway  between  the  two  conti- 
nents, over  which  the  commerce,  wealth,  and  teeming  population 
of  the  East  found  their  way  into  Southern  Europe.  The  ear- 
liest Greek  scholars  were  natives  of  Asia  Minor;  civilization  and 
art,  philosophy  and  literature,  were  first  cultivated  here.  This 
was  the  home  of  Homer,  Pythagoras  and  Herodotus.  Here 
the  model  of  all  epic  poetry  was  written.  Here  Grecian  archi- 
tecture achieved  its  first  triumphs ;  and  it  was  here  Alexander 
the  Great  cut  the  intricate  Gordian  knot  that  made  him  con- 
queror of  all  Asia.  But  to  write  the  history  of  Asia  Minor 
would  be  to  write  up  the  history  of  the  world ;  as  it  was  among 
the  earliest  civilized  portions  of  the  globe,  and  the  seat  of  some 
of  the  most  wealthy,  powerful,  and  highly  cultured  nations  of 
antiquity.  Here  was  the  Trojan  Kingdom  of  Priam,  that  with- 
stood the  arms  of  all  Greece  for  years;  here  flourished  the  re- 
fined Republic  of  Ionia,  marking  the  first  development  of 
Grecian  art ;  here,  also,  Crcesus  reigned  in  grander  state  than 
any  other  king  on  earth.  The  monumental  remains  of  these 
kingdoms  are  among  the  grandest  works  of  man,  and  for  ages 
have  been  among  the  wonders  of  the  world.  The  Temple  of 
Diana,  at  Ephesus,  was  perfection  itself;  and  the  Mausoleum  at 
Halicarnassus  a  gem  of  beauty. 

Mausolus  was  King  of  Caria,   in   the  southwest  corner  of 


ANCIENT    AX  ATOM  A.  459 

Anatolia.  At  his  death  his  wife,  Artemisia,  caused  this  magnifi- 
cent monument  to  be  erected  to  his  memory.  It  was  called  the 
Mausoleum  in  honor  of  the  king,  and  on  account  of  its  cost  and 
exquisite  workmanship  was  estimated  one  of  t1ie  seven  wonders 
of  the  world,  giving  its  name  to  all  future  imposing  structures 
of  the  kind.  Yet,  this  beautiful  monument  was  only  his  ceno- 
taph, for  it  is  said  that  the  grief  of  this  woman  was  so  great 
over  her  dead  husband,  she  had  his  body  cremated,  mixing  his 
ashes  in  her  daily  drink,  thus  making  her  own  body  his  living 
tomb.  Recently  some  Austrian  archaeologists,  excavating  on  the 
site  of  an  unknown  city,  near  Halicarnassus,  discovered  another 
Mausoleum,  not  unlike  that  of  the  King  of  Caria,  and  orna- 
mented with  reliefs  in  the  finest  style  of  art.  The  sculptures, 
which  comprise  scenes  from  the  "  Odyssey,"  and  combats  of 
Amazons,  belong  to  the  early  florid  epoch  of  Greek  art. 

Xo  portion  of  the  East  is  favored  with  a  more  salubrious 
climate,  or  a  more  productive  soil,  or  with  greater  natural  re- 
sources of  wealth,  than  Asia  Minor.  And  in  no  portion  of  the 
globe  can  there  be  found  so  many  buried  cities,  and  other  traces 
of  extinct  nations. 

This  magnificent  domain,  which  in  ancient  times  supplied  the 
wealth  and  splendor  of  a  dozen  thrones,  is  now  lying,  like  an 
old  neglected  estate,  in  ruins,  no  encouragement  being  given  to 
its  development  by  the  effete  Turkish  government.  Being  a 
part  of  the  Ottoman  Empire,  an  absolute  despotism,  there  is  no 
protection  to  life  or  property ;  and  this  whole  region,  once  the 
fairest  portion  and  light  of  Asia,  has  become  a  vast  wilderness, 
infested  with  panthers,  wolves,  bears  and  other  wild  beasts,  and 
overrun  by  wandering  Arabs  and  Greek  brigands,  making  it 
extremely  perilous  to  explore;  in  fact,  without  a  strong  escort, 
and  authority  from  the  pashas  or  sultan,  it  would  he  impossible 


460  BIBLE    LANDS. 

to  travel  safely  through  this  portion  of  Asia.  On  one  occasion 
we  were  attacked  by  brigands  during  a  furious  rain  and  hail- 
storm; we,  however,  were  too  strong  for  the  banditti,  and  not 
only  drove  them  off  but  captured  one  of  their  number,  turning 
him  over  to  the  civil  authorities,  I  suppose,  only  to  be  set  free, 
as  a  few  dollars  will  secure  the  release  of  any  criminal  in  the 
East.  At  another  time  a  treacherous  guide  we  had  employed  to 
conduct  us  to  a  certain  point,  led  us  out  of  our  way,  and  per- 
sisted in  going  on  until  his  life  was  threatened,  if  he  did  not 
take  us  safely  back  to  the  direct  road.  We  knew  not  his  inten- 
tions, but  there  was  something  suspicious  about  the  fellow,  and 
we  concluded  he  was  leading  us  into  some  robbers'  den  to  rob, 
if  not  murder,  our  whole  party.  One  day  we  met  a  strong  party 
of  Bedouins;  resistance  would  have  been  madness,  so  we  allowed 
ourselves  to  be  carried  to  their  village  as  prisoners.  But  when 
they  learned  our  official  character,  and  that  we  were  travelling 
under  authority  from  the  Sublime  Porte,  they,  either  through 
fear  of  the  American  government  or  the  Sultan,  became  greatly 
alarmed,  begged  our  pardon,  fell  on  the  ground  and  kissed  our 
feet,  saying,  the  whole  country  was  ours,  and  that  they  were  but 
dust  and  ashes  before  us.  Religious  fanaticism,  despotic  rule, 
and  oppressive  taxation  are  the  principal  causes  of  the  present 
wretched  condition  of  this  country.  The  sparse,  ignorant  popu- 
lation need  law,  justice,  and  education,  for  their  protection  and 
elevation ;  but  these  can  never  be  obtained  so  long  as  corrupt 
pashas  and  tax-collectors  are  in  authority.  With  its  fine  climate, 
splendid  harbors,  rich  deposits  of  iron,  copper  and  gold,  and 
other  natural  advantages,  under  a  proper  government  it  would 
soon  recover  much  of  its  ancient  glory. 

In  our  late  tour  through  the  Levant,  so  full  of  historic  inter- 
est, we  were  favored  with  a  firman  from  the  Sublime  Porte,  as- 


sultan's   firman.  4G1 

siiring  us  protection,  and  granting  us  the  freedom  of  the  country. 
The  document  is  five  feet  five  inches  long,  and  twenty-two 
inches  broad,  beautifully  written  on  vellum  paper,  in  red,  black, 
and  gold  Turkish  characters,  also  bearing  the  large  unique  sig- 
nature of  the  Sultan  in  red,  about  the  size  of  and  resembling  a 
human  hand.  During  the  Dark  Ages,  when  the  Goths,  Van- 
dals, Huns,  Turks,  and  other  barbarian  hordes  overran  Europe, 
the  masses,  and  even  the  nobility  and  many  of  the  kings,  co\il(l 
neither  read  nor  write,  and  when  these  unlettered  kings  had  to 
subscribe  their  names  to  documents  drawn  up  by  their  scribes, 
they  would  smear  their  right  hand  with  ink  and  slap  it  down 
upon  the  parchment,  saying,  "  Witness  my  hand."  And  it  is 
related  of  many  of  the  Sultans  that,  in  signing  their  names,  they 
dipped  their  hands  in  human  blood,  which  is  strongly  suggested 
by  the  autograph  on  this  firman.  At  a  later  date,  seals,  bearing 
some  device,  were  used  with  the  hand;  hence,  the  formula  still 
in  use,  "  Witness  my  hand  and  seal,"  reminding  us  of  the  igno- 
rance of  the  middle  ages.  As  a  translation  of  this  firman  may 
interest  some  of  our  readers,  we  give  it  entire: 

TRANSLATION  OF  THE  SULTAN'S    FIRMAN. 

"The  President  of  the  United  States  of  America,  having  appointed  tiie  Hon. 
F.  S.  De  Hass  Consul  at  Jerusalem,  and  the  Legation  of  the  United  States  having 
requested  the  official  recognition  of  Effendi  De  Hass  as  United  States  Consul  at 
Jerusalem,  I  therefore  issue  this  Firman,  and  give  my  orders  to  all  in  authority, 
and  to  all  subjects  of  the  Sublime  Porte,  to  recognize  the  said  Hon.  F.  S.  De  Ifass 
as  the  American  Consul,  and  grant  him  that  protection  and  respect  which  his 
office  commands. 

"And  all  governors,  judges,  and  officers  of  the  Sublime  Porte  are  to  aid  him  in 
the  execution  of  his  duties,  and  under  no  pretense  interfere  in  his  affairs,  nor  ar- 
rest any  American  subject  without  his  permission  ;  nor  under  any  plea  enter  the 
consul's  domicile,  or  molest  him,  or  his  family,  or  servants,  or  property  of  any 
kind,  in  any  way,  under  the  severest  penalty.  Custom-Iiouse  officers  are  also  to 
allow  all  articles  for  the  consul  to  pass  free  of  duty,  and  all  respect  and  dignity 
are  to  be  shown  the  Hon.  F.  S.  De  Hsuis  on  all  occasions. 

"  By  order  of  the  Sublime  Porte. 

(Signed)        "The  Sultan." 


462  BIBLE     LANDS. 

Armed  with  this  formidable  document,  and  accompanied  by  a 
military  escort,  detailed  from  the  pasha's  body-guard,  we  suc- 
ceeded, without  any  great  difficulty,  in  making  the  tour  of 
Western  Asia,  and  in  identifying  many  of  her  renowned  cities, 
the  ruins  of  which  still  attest  their  ancient  splendor.  It  is  very 
difficult,  however,  to  realize  that  the  heaps  of  rubbish  every- 
where met  with,  were  once  opulent  cities  teeming  with  popula- 
tion ;  that  these  almost  forgotten  nations  excelled  in  their  knowl- 
edge of  architecture  and  many  of  the  sciences,  and  that  we  are 
still  far  behind  them  in  many  of  the  fine  arts.  It  is  a  great  mis- 
take to  suppose  that  we  of  the  nineteenth  century  are  wiser  and 
more  skilled  than  the  nations  of  old.  Except  in  morals,  where 
Christian  principles  prevail,  we  are  nothing  more  than  plagiar- 
ists and  imitators.  We  are  greatly  indebted  to  the  ancients  for 
our  language,  laws,  and  principles  of  self-government.  Our 
much-admired  public  buildings  at  Washington  and  elsewhere, 
are  mostly  modeled  after  the  edifices  of  ancient  Greece  or  Rome ; 
and  the  beautiful  frescoes  and  sculptures  that  adorn  them  are 
mere  copies,  and  many  of  them  nothing  but  caricatures. 

No  modern  architect  has  been  able  to  produce  anything  like 
the  Parthenon  at  Athens,  that  looks  down  through  the  ages 
upon  us  more  like  an  apparition  than  anything  real.  They 
undertook  to  reproduce  it  in  Paris,  in  building  the  Madeleine,  at 
a  cost  of  $2,500,000,  but  signally  failed.  This  church,  when 
compared  with  the  Temple  of  Minerva,  looks  stiff  and  graceless, 
like  a  wooden  horse  by  the  side  of  a  sprightly  living  steed.  The 
secret  of  its  beauty  lies  in  the  fact  that  there  is  not  a  straight 
line  in  the  Parthenon,  every  wall,  column,  and  architrave,  from 
foundation  to  pediment,  being  cut  on  a  graceful  curve,  corre- 
sponding with  the  rotundity  of  the  earth.  Our  best  artists  never 
dream  of  excelling  Raphael,  Phidias,  or  the  old  masters,  whose 


SCIENCE     OF    THE    ANCIENTS,  ,  463 

works  are  the  very  ideal  of  perfection.  The  most  brilliant 
thoughts  that  glow  in  modern  poetry,  are  borrowed  from  Orien- 
tal legends  older  than  Christianity.  Xo  higher  compliment  can 
l)e  passed  upon  a  public  speaker,  than  to  tell  him  his  eloquence 
equals  that  of  Cicero,  or  Demosthenes ;  and  everybody  knows 
that  Washington  Irving's  legend  of  Rip  Van  Winkle  was  sug- 
gested by  the  seven  sleepers  of  Ephesus.  Even  the  familiar 
nursery  rhyme,  "  The  House  that  Jack  built,"  is  found  in  the 
oldest  legends  of  the  Orient,  and  is  supposed  to  have  originated 
with  the  building  of  Solomon's  Temple.  We  have  scarcely 
added  a  single  line  of  beauty  to  the  poetry,  painting,  sculpture, 
or  architecture  of  by -gone  days.  When  I  inquired  of  one  of  the 
engineers  engaged  on  the  great  Brooklyn  Bridge,  if  there  was  no 
danger  of  the  sea  washing  out  the  mortar  between  the  stones  in  the 
towers,  he  replied,  "  None,  whatever ;  we  have  a  new  process 
of  mixing  the  cement  with  oil,  rendering  it  impervious  to  water." 
He  was  very  much  surprised  when  I  told  him  that  Solomon,  in 
building  his  aqueducts,  three  thousand  years  ago,  laid  every 
stone  in  cement  mixed  with  olive-oil.  The  same  is  true  of  the 
science  of  practical  chemistry,  and  the  mechanical  arts. 

In  some  of  these  cities,  buried  for  thousands  of  years,  speci- 
mens of  glass  have  been  found  perfectly  beautiful.  Translucent 
window-glass,  cut  glass,  colored  glass,  even  crown  glass,  in  a  great 
variety  of  articles,  some  resembling  precious  stones,  which  our  best 
glass  workers  have  failed  in  reproducing :  such  as  the  Portland 
Vase  in  the  British  Museum,  and  the  celebrated  Geneva  Cup, 
which,  according  to  tradition,  was  among  the  presents  given  to 
Solomon  by  the  Queen  of  Sheba,  and  so  perfect,  it  was  long  con- 
sidered a  solid  emerald,  and  valued  at  $3,000,000.  On  the  oldest 
monuments  of  Egypt,  glass-blowers  may  be  seen  at  work  very 
much  as  at  the  present  day,  and  in  the  tombs  near  Thebes  lovely 


464  BIBLE    LANDS. 

goblets  of  variegated  glass  were  found.  In  the  Catacombs  of 
Ron)e,  they  have  found  glassware  richly  enamelled,  and  on  one 
piece,  the  outlines  of  the  Temple  at  Jerusalem  in  gilt.  I  have  in 
my  possession  a  glass  bottle  taken  from  a  tomb  in  Cyprus,  in 
which  gold  has  been  fused,  giving  it  a  golden  tinge;  and  a  large 
bead  inlaid  with  enamel,  at  least  3,000  years  old.  The  latter  is 
Egyptian. 

The  ancients  also  understood  the  manufacture  of  malleable 
glass,  so  pliant  it  could  be  bent  like  copper,  or  if  thrown  on  the 
marble  floor  would  not  break.  It  was  transparent,  but  not  brit- 
tle.    An  art  entirely  lost. 

And  in  the  working  of  metals  they  far  surjiassed  us.  Chisels, 
and  other  instruments  in  copper  or  bronze,  have  been  found 
harder  than  steel,  and  their  swords  of  steel  carry  an  edge  and 
bear  a  polish  that  we  have  never  been  able  to  give  them.  A 
gold  bracelet  from  an  old  Phoenician  tomb  was  taken  to  one  of 
our  first  goldsmiths  for  repairs,  and  he  admitted  that  no  artifi- 
cer in  America  could  equal  it  in  workmanship.  They  were 
equally  skilled  in  lapidary  work.  Their  engraved  gems  are 
marvels  of  beauty;  battle-scenes  often  carved  on  the  hardest 
gems  not  larger  than  a  dime.  I  have  in  ray  cabinet  a  signet  ring, 
2,000  years  old,  set  with  an  oriental  agate  less  than  half  an  inch 
in  diameter,  on  which  Hercules  strangling  the  Nemean  lion  is 
carved  so  perfectly,  you  can  see  the  expression  of  the  face  and 
extended  muscles  of  the  body  distinctly.  And  in  the  art  of 
coloring,  we  have  never  been  able  to  compete  with  them.  Our 
brightest  colors  fade  in  a  few  years,  but  in  the  tombs  of  Egypt, 
and  on  the  walls  of  Pompeii,  the  paintings  of  the  ancients  look 
as  fresh  as  if  done  but  yesterday.  In  the  tomb  of  the 
old  Pharaohs  recently  discovered  at  Deir  el  Bahari,  a  funeral 
tent  was  found,  twenty  by  twenty-two  feet,  richly  embroidered  oa 


LOST    ARTS.  485 

gazelle  skins  highly  colored,  the  separate  pieces  being  stitched  to- 
gether with  colored  thread ;  the  whole  wonderfully  preserved 
The  Roman  empire  has  come  and  gone ;  the  Greek  empire  has 
(rome  and  gone ;  the  Assyrian  and  Persian  empires  have  come  and 
gone,  since  these  old  kings  were  gathered  to  their  fathers,  and  yet, 
here  is  the  canopy  that  covered  their  mortal  remains,  the  coloring 
on  it  looking  as  fresh  as  when  they  were  laid  to  rest  in  their  quiet 
tombs. 

In  fact,  we  have  been  dealing  with  borrowed  capital.  Many  of 
the  inventions  we  claim  are  only  reproductions;  and  at  least 
ninety-nine  per  cent,  of  all  we  know  we  have  gathered  from  the 
ashes  of  the  past. 

Their  mechanical  skill  in  moving  heavy  bodies  was  even  more 
marvelous.  We  consider  the  transporting  of  Cleopatra's  Needle 
from  Alexandria  to  New  York,  weighing  less  than  two  hundred 
tons,  a  great  achievement,  but  in  the  foundation  walls  of  the 
great  temple  at  Baalbec  there  are  single  stones  weighing  twelve 
hundred  tons,  equal  to  half  a  dozen  such  obelisks.  The  colossal 
granite  statue  of  Rameses  the  Great  at  Thebes,  in  the  rough, 
must  have  weighed  one  thousand  tons,  which  Herodotus  tells 
us  was  brought  overland  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles,  from 
the  quarry  at  Syene. 

This  statue  represents  the  king  sitting  on  his  throne  as  a 
mighty  conqueror,  in  perfect  majesty  and  repose.  No  longer 
engaged  in  conflicts  with  his  enemies,  he  has  laid  aside  his  sword, 
and  is  now  enjoying  the  reward  of  his  victories,  and  homage  of 
his  subjects. 

How  such  huge  masses  were  handled. has  long  been  the  wonder- 
ment of  inquirers.  The  only  clue  we  have  to  the  secret  is  found 
pictured  on  the  walls  of  these  buried  cities,  as  shown  in  our  illus- 
tration.    In  one  of  the  halls  of  the  magnificent  palace  of  Sen- 


466  BIBIiE     LANDS. 

nacherib,  discovered  by  Mr.  Layard  at  Nineveh,  numerous  large 
sculptured  alabaster  slabs  were  found,  recording  all  events  of 
interest  during  the  king's  reign,  and  giving  us  some  idea  of  their 
mechanical  skill.  One  bass-relief  represents  the  process  of  traUvS- 
porting  a  colossal  human-headed  bull  from  the  quarry  to  the 
palace.  There  is  the  wooden  sledge  on  which  the  monster 
stands ;  there  the  cables  that  hold  it  in  position ;  and  there  the 
overseer  standing  on  the  front  of  the  sledge  directing  operations. 
Strong  ropes  of  bark  are  attached  to  the  sledge,  by  means  of 
which,  with  the  aid  of  levers,  it  is  moved  slowly  along  on  rollers, 
by  a  host  of  men,  probably  captives,  as  they  are  in  squads  under 
armed  guards.  Similar  scenes  are  depicted  on  the  monuments 
of  Egypt,  leading  us  to  infer  that  this  was  their  process  in  mov- 
ing such  bodies.  But  whether  masses  weighing  four  and  five 
thousand  tons,  as  the  temple  of  Safe,  could  be  moved  six  hundred 
miles  by  such  appliances,  remains  still  a  problem  which  future 
explorations  can  only  solve. 

Constantinople  being  the  capital  of  the  Ottoman  empire,  and 
partly  in  Asia  Minor,  we  cannot  very  well  conclude  this  chapter 
without  a  passing  notice  of  this  ancient  city,  the  scene  of  so  many 
severe  conflicts  between  the  armies  of  Asia  and  Europe. 

Taking  a  steamer  at  Smyrna  we  were  soon  out  among  the 
classic  islands  of  the  Grecian  Archipelago.  There  was  Tenedos, 
so  celebrated  in  heathen  mythology,  where  Laocoon  and  his  sons 
were  strangled  by  the  serpent,  and  where  the  Greeks  found 
shelter  after  their  repulse  from  Troy,  and  constructed  the  wooden 
horse  by  means  of  which  they  finally  captured  the  city.  And 
a  little  beyond,  on  the  horizon,  could  be  seen  the  two  volcanic 
crests  of  Lemnos,  where  Vulcan  forged  his  thunder-bolts  for 
Jove.  The  sun  was  just  rising  over  the  lofty  summit  of  Mount 
Ida,  as  we  passed   the  site  of  ancient  Troy,  causing  the  whole 


CONSTANTINOPJ.E.  469 

plain  to  flash  with  fire  as  when  the  hosts  of  Greece,  on  the  same 
field,  drew  their  glittering  swords  for  the  last  grand  charge  on 
the  Trojan  stronghold.  What  emotions  the  scene  awakened  J 
What  heroic  deeds  of  old  were  witnessed  on  that  plain  !  How 
the  forms  of  Hector,  and  Achilles,  and  Paris,  and  a  host  of 
others  rose  up  before  me  like  spectres  from  the  grave!  No  shout 
of  victory,  no  noise  of  contending  armies  is  now  heard ;  all  is 
silence  and  desolation,  and  a  few  mounds  of  rubbish  about  all 
that  remains  above  ground  of  the  royal  city  of  Priam.  A  few 
hours  brought  us  into  the  Dardanelles,  up  which  we  now  steamed 
with  the  two  castles  of  Asia  and  Europe  on  our  right  and  left. 
Passing  rapidly  Cape  Nagara,  where  Xerxes  and  Alexander 
crossed  the  Hellespont,  and  Leander  was  drowned  in  swimming 
over  to  his  beautiful  Hero,  we  soon  entered  the  Propontis,  or  Sea 
of  Marmora,  then  the  deep  channel  of  the  Bosphorus,  and  as  we 
rounded  to  in  the  Golden  Horn,  Constantinople,  with  her  thous- 
and domes  and  minarets,  loomed  up  before  us  like  some  celestial 
city,  in  all  her  glory. 

Nothing  could  be  more  grand  than  a  view  from  the  bay,  on  a 
bright  morning,  of  the  city  of  the  "Crescent  and  Star,"  with  its 
background  of  dark  cypress  trees.  They  have  a  beautiful  prac- 
tice here  of  planting  a  cypress  in  memory  of  every  one  who  dies, 
so  that  there  are  vast  groves  of  these  trees  in  the  suburbs  of  this 
city,  and  it  said  that  their  foliage  absorbs  the  poisonous  gases 
exhaled  by  the  dead,  thus  preventing  pestilence. 

Constantinople,  or  ancient  Byzantium,  was  founded  by  Byzas, 
658  B.  c.  Constantine  the  Great  made  it  the  eastern  capital  of 
the  Roman  Empire,  328  A.  D.  Now  it  is  the  third  city  in  Eu- 
rope, with  a  population  of  over  1,000,000.  There  are,  in  fact, 
three  cities  in  one,  Stamboul,  Pera  and  Scutari,  situated  on  both 
sides  of  the  Bosphorus  and  Golden  Horn.     It  is  the  head  of  the 


470  BIBLE     LANDS. 

Ottoman  Empire, and  known  as  the  Sublime  Porte,  from  a  mag- 
nificent gateway  leading  to  the  royal  palace.  The  government  is 
an  absolute  despotism  ;  the  will  of  the  Sultan  being  supreme,  he 
claiming  the  whole  country  and  all  the  people  in  it.  Through  the 
influence  of  Europeans  and  Americans,  a  more  liberal  policy  is 
being  adopted  by  the  Sultan ;  railroads  and  lines  of  telegraph 
are  being  introduced,  newspapers  under  certain  restrictions  are 
permitted;  females  are  allowed  to  be  educated  and  to  appear  in 
public  unveiled  ;  the  streets  are  being  widened,  paved  and  named, 
and  some  of  them  are  now  lighted  with  gas.  These  and  other 
changes  in  customs  and  manners  indicate  a  new  departure  in 
the  right  direction,  and  bid  fair  to  renovate  the  nation  and  prolong 
the  "  sick  man's  "  life. 

The  Sultan  seldom  appears  in  public,  except  when  he  goes  to 
the  mosque  for  prayers  once  a  week,  at  noon,  on  Friday.  Never 
having  seen  the  ruler  of  Turkey,  I  embraced  the  first  oppor- 
tunity, and  mounting  ray  horse,  on  Friday,  tiie  Mohammedan 
Sunday,  rode  down  to  the  Sublime  Porte,  of  the  sublime  palace, 
to  see  his  sublime  majesty,  mount  a  sublime  horse,  and  ride  in 
sublime  state,  to  a  sublime  mosque,  to  engage  in  the  sublime 
worship  of  the  sublime  camel-driver  of  Mecca.  The  whole  affair 
appeared  like  sublime  nonsense  and  ended  in  a  sublime  farce.  The 
day  was  very  warm ;  the  turnout  of  soldiers  fine,  and  the  throng 
of  citizens  and  strangers  great.  After  waiting  about  an  hour  in  the 
hot  sun,  the  Sultan  and  his  suite  appeai'ed  on  horseback,  he  on  a 
large,  gray  Arabian  steed,  splendidly  caparisoned.  As  his 
majesty  rode  slowly  along,  officei*s  walked  ahead  scattering  clean, 
sharp  sand  over  the  road-bed,  that  Allah's  representative  might 
not  even  ride  over  ground  polluted  by  the  common  feet  of  man 
or  beast.  Soon  after  he  left  the  palace-gate,  a  poor  peasant  man, 
near  where  I  was  standing,  rushed  through  the  crowd  and  threw 


DANCING     DERVISHES.  471 

himself  in  front  of  the  Saltan's  horse,  to  be  ridden  over,  which 
is  considered  by  pious  Mussel  mans,  a  great  privilege.  There  is  a 
sect  of  fanatical  Mohammedans  here  known  as  the  howling  or 
dancing  dervishes.  They  are  a  class  of  astrologers.  The 
mosque  they  meet  in  is  circular.  Their  sheik  or  priest,  repre- 
senting the  sun,  sits  in  the  centre;  the  other  worshipers  represent 
different  planets ;  the  music  the  sighing  of  the  winds,  and  the 
whole  service  the  harmony  of  nature.  Their  dress  consists  of  a 
high,  conical  hat,  short,  tight  jacket,  and  long,  wide  skirt.  After 
bowing  to  the  sheik  and  going  through  other  performances,  they 
commence  whirling  round  faster  and  faster,  thirty,  forty  and 
fifty  times  a  minute,  like  so  many  tops;  some  with  hands  up- 
lifted, others  with  arms  extended,  until  one  becomes  dizzy  wit- 
nessing their  rapid  movements.  After,  perhaps,  fifteen  minutes, 
there  was  a  lull,  and  they  all  walked  in  front  of  the  sheik,  bow- 
ing to  the  floor  as  they  passed,  and  then  continued  their  revolu- 
tions as  before.  The  howling  dervishes  began  by  groaning, 
then  puffing,  and  next  howling  like  savages;  at  the  same  time 
their  bodies  were  kept  in  rapid  motion  right  and  left;  then  for- 
ward and  backward,  jumping  higher  and  higher,  howling  louder 
and  louder  in  the  most  disgusting  manner,  until  one  after  another 
they  staggered  and  fell  groaning  on  the  floor,  after  which  the 
sheik  arose  and  walked  over  their  prostrate  bodies.  There  was 
one  who  did  not  howl  or  jump,  but  stood  off  by  himself,  swing- 
ing his  head  to  and  fro,  then  round  and  round  as  if  it  was  on  a 
pivot,  his  long  hair  snapping  with  every  jerk,  and  his  head  re- 
volving so  rapidly  on  his  long,  slender  neck,  I  exj)ected  every 
moment  to  see  it  fly  off  on  a  tangent.  He  must  have  repre- 
sented the  moon,  for  I  never  saw  such  a  lunatic  before. 

No  more  delightful  excursion  can  be  taken  than  a  sail  up  the 
Bosphorus  twenty -five  miles  to  the  Black  Sea.    With  Europe  on 


472  BIBLE     LANDS. 

the  one  side  and  Asia  on  the  other ;  the  shores  lined  with  forti- 
fications and  palaces,  and  the  stream  crowded  with  vessels  from 
every  port  of  the  Orient.  The  Bosphorus  itself  is  the  most 
beautiful  sheet  of  water  in  the  world,  not  over  a  mile  wide, 
clear  and  deep,  with  bold  shores,  covered  with  villas  and  beauti- 
ful gardens  down  to  the  water's  edge.  Just  above  the  city,  the 
new  palaces  of  the  Sultan  extend  for  at  least  a  mile  along  its 
banks.  They  are  highly  Oriental  in  style,  with  grounds  beauti- 
fully laid  out,  aud  in  every  respect  are  equal  to  any  in  western 
Europe. 

The  Hippodrome  is  one  of  the  most  celebrated  places  both  of 
the  ancient  and  modern  city ;  it  is  nine  hundred  feet  long  by 
four  hundred  and  fifty  wide.  It  still  contains  the  granite  obelis^k 
of  Thebes,  set  up  by  Theodosius  the  Great;  here  also  is  the 
broken  pillar  of  Constantine,  stripped  of  its  bronze  by  the  Turks 
when  the  city  was  first  captured.  Between  the  two  is  the  spiral 
brass  column  consisting  of  three  serpents  twisted  together;  they 
originally  supported  the  golden  tripod  in  the  temple  of  Delphi. 
Bordering  on  the  Hippodrome  was  the  old  imperial  palace;  also 
the  Senate-house  and  Forum. 

The  object,  however,  of  greatest  interest  in  Constantinople  to 
most  travellers  is  the  great  mosque  of  St.  Sophia,  originally  a 
Christian  church,  commenced  by  Constantine  the  Great  in  the 
fourth  century.  Its  dome,  the  largest  in  the  world,  is  supported 
by  one  hundred  and  seventy  columns  of  granite,  marble,  jasper 
and  porphyry.  All  the  pagan  temples  of  Rome,  Greece,  Asia 
and  Egypt,  were  stripped  of  their  rich  marbles  for  the  erection 
of  this  magnificent  church.  A  gallery  extends  around  the  whole 
building  sixty  feet  deep,  the  approach  to  which  is  by  an  inclined 
plane  on  the  outside,  up  which  you  could  easily  drive  a  carriage. 
Here,  in  this  grand  old  church,  the  "  Golden-Mouthed  "  Chrysos- 


ANCIENT    ANATOLIA.  473 

iom,  bishop  of  Constantinople,  often  denounced  in  fervent  words 
the  errors  of  his  day,  and  preached  Christ  as  the  only  ho})e  of 
our  wretched  world ;  and  it  was  here,  when  threatened  with 
banishment  or  death  for  his  earnest,  practical  preaching,  by  the 
empress  Eudoxia,  that  he  fearlessly  replied,  "  Should  the  empress 
determine  to  banish  me,  let  her  banish  me.  The  earth  is  the 
Lord's.  If  she  should  cast  me  into  the  sea,  let  her  cast  me  into 
the  sea.  I  will  remember  Jonah."  The  symbol  of  Christianity 
no  longer  adorns  the  dome  of  St.  Sophia,  and  it  is  a  standing 
disgrace  to  the  Christian  nations  of  the  world,  that  the  crescent 
of  the  false  prophet  is  allowed  to  supplant  the  cross  on  this  ven- 
erable church. 

That  which  renders  Asia  Minor  of  special  interest  to  us  is  the 
iact,  that  it  was  the  seat  of  the  first  Christian  churches  among 
the  Gentiles,  whose  histories  we  are  now  to  consider. 


CHAPTER  n. 

SEVEN   CHURCHES  OF   ASIA. 

Gift  of  power — First  great  revival — Early  persecution  of  Christians — Martyrdom 
of  Stephen,  James  the  brother  of  John,  and  James  the  just — The  disciples 
scattered  abroad — John  in  Ephesus — Banished  to  Patmos — Writes  the  Apo- 

*  calypse — Returns  to  Ephesus — Writes  his  Gospel  and  Epistles — Death  and 
burial — Description  of  Ephesus,  and  Temple  of  Diana — Smyrna  and  Poly- 
carp — Pergamos — Thyatira— Sardis — Philadelphia — Laodicea — Athens  and 
Mars'  Hill. 

rpHE  gift  of  power,  or  baptism  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  on  the  day 
A  of  Pentecost  was  attended  by  a  gracious  revival  of  pure 
religion  among  the  multitude  of  strangers  then  in  the  Holy  City 
celebrating  the  great  feast  that  commemorated  the  giving  of  the 
Law  on  Sinai.  Thase  thousands  of  new  converts  soon  after  re- 
turned to  their  homes,  carrying  with  them  vivid  recollections  of 
what  they  had  witnessed,  and  heard,  and  felt  on  that  memorable 
occasion,  and  many  Christian  societies  were  formed  in  different 
parts  of  Asia,  Africa  and  Europe. 

This  wonderful  display  of  divine  grace  was  followed  by  a 
bloody  persecution  of  the  disciples  of  Christ  in  Jerusalem,  during 
which  Stephen,  a  pious  deacon  of  the  church,  and  James  the 
just,  and  half-brother  of  Jesus,  were  stoned  to  death;  and  James 
the  elder,  a  brother  of  the  apostle  John,  beheaded. 

The  immediate  effect  of  this  persecution  was  to  scatter  the 

apostles  and  disciples  abroad  among  the  Gentile  nations.     Many 

of  these  Christians  came  into  Anatolia,  planting  churches  in  most 

of  the  cities  of  western  Asia.   John,  the  Apostle  and  Evangelist^ 
474 


SEVEN    CHURCHES    OF    ASIA.  475 

was  among  those  who  settled  in  Ephesus,  where  Paul,  and  per- 
haps Timothy,  had  already  preceded  him.  Here  the  earnest 
preaching  and  spotless  life  of  the  apostle  soon  resulted  in  the 
organization  of  a  strong  Christian  church  in  this  great  centre  of 
power  and  idolatry,  and  under  the  very  shadow  of  the  goddess 
whom  all  the  world  worshipped ;  and  through  his  labors  and 
the  influence  of  the  gospel  he  preached,  the  great  temple  of  Diana, 
that  has  never  been  equaled  in  grace,  beauty,  or  design,  was 
stripped  of  its  prestige,  and  in  a  few  years  leveled  with  the 
ground,  and  its  beautiful  marbles  carried  away  to  build  up  Chris- 
tian churches  in  different  cities  of  the  Levant.  How  little  the 
Ephesians  thought  that  the  worship  of  their  goddess  should  ever 
be  superseded  by  that  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth !  Yet,  the  shout, 
"  Great  is  Diana  of  the  Ephesians,"  that  rang  through  the  theatre 
and  this  temple,  at  the  time  of  St.  Paul's  visit  to  Ephesus,  has 
long  since  died  away  into  the  silence  of  forgotten  centuries,  while 
the  praises  of  Jesus  are  chanted  to-day  by  millions  of  Christian 
voices  all  over  the  globe. 

The  Gospel  and  Epistles  of  St.  John  were  probably  written 
from  this  city,  and  his  Revelation  from  Patmos,  a  small  rocky 
island  in  the  -^gean  Sea,  not  more  than  ten  miles  in  diameter, 
and  about  twenty-five  miles  from  the  main  land.  On  a  hill  to 
the  south  an  old  monastery  is  still  standing,  bearing  the  name 
of  "  John  the  Divine ; "  and  about  halfway  up  this  rugged  moun- 
tain, is  a  cave  said  to  be  the  grotto  where  the  divine  received 
and  wrote  the  Apocalypse. 

Whether  the  Apostle  and  Evangelist  was  banished  to  the  isle 
"  that  is  called  Patmos,"  or  went  there  of  his  own  accord  to 
commune  alone  with  God,  is  a  disputed  point  of  no  great  mo- 
ment. Tradition  tells  us,  he  was  sent  there  with  others,  to  work 
in  the  mines.    Not  very  likely,  as  there  are  no  mines  in  Patmos 


476  BIBLE    LANDS. 

to  work,  and  never  were ;  at  least  we  were  all  over  the  island  and 
could  find  no  traces  of  raining.  Or  whether  it  was  in  the  reign 
of  Nero  or  Domitian  he  wrote  the  Apocalypse,  has  never  been 
settled.  The  majority  of  critics,  and  biblical  scholars  think  it 
was  during  the  reign  of  Domitian,  about  95  A.  D.  Little,  how- 
ever, is  known  of  this  apostle  prior  to  his  apocalyptic  vision  and 
return  to  Ephesus.  The  internal  evidence  of  the  genuineness  of 
this  message  to  the  churches  is  so  strong,  its  authenticity  is 
generally  admitted.  It  is  a  book  of  burning  words,  deep  emo- 
tions and  startling  revelations.  As  Bengel  says,  "  Without  tears 
it  was  not  written ;  without  tears  it  cannot  be  understood,"  The 
Revelator  seems  to  write  as  Jerome,  with  the  trump  of  God 
ringing  in  his  ears.  The  church  was  in  close  conflict  with  Greek 
philosophy,  and  in  direct  antagonism  to  pagan  Rome.  John,  "  in 
the  Spirit  on  the  Lord's  day,"  from  his  sea-girt  isle  views  the 
terrible  conflict  from  afar,  and  seeing  the  fierce,  relentless  perse- 
cution everywhere  waged  against  the  helpless  disciples  of  Christ; 
and  "the  souls  of  them  that  had  been  beheaded  for  the  testimony 
of  Jesus,"  ^  among  them  the  soul  of  James,  his  own  brother,  and 
the  great  soul  of  St.  Paul,  both  of  whom  had  sealed  their  faith 
with  their  blood ;  he  issues  his  letter  to  these  churches, 
exhorting  them  to  endure  the  fiery  trial,  calling  the  whole 
Christian  host  to  arms,  encouraging  them  with  the  precious 
promise,  "To  him  that  overcometh,  will  I  give  to  eat  of  the 
tree  of  life,  which  is  in  the  midst  of  the  paradise  of  God." 
Though  desolation  and  defeat  threaten  the  church,  and  the 
heavens  are  lurid  with  the  fires  of  burning  saints,  he  sees  through 
the  blood,  and  smoke,  and  flames,  the  final  triumph  of  the  cross, 
and  urges  them  on  to  victory,  inspiring  them  to  heroic  deeds  by 
holding  out  a  crown  of  life,  and  by  assuring  them  that  the  kiug- 

•Rev.  XX.  4. 


REVELATION   OF   ST.    JOHN.  477 

doms  of  this  world  shall  "  become  the  kingdom  of  our  Lord,  and 
of  his  Christ;  and  he  shall  reign  for  ever  and  ever."  * 

The  book  abounds  with  lofty  ideas,  beautiful  metaphors,  and 
startling  visions.  The  author  writes  from  the  highest  court  of 
heaven,  under  the  eye  of  Him  that  sitteth  upon  the  throne,  and  as 
the  Spij-it  dictate?,  giving  a  progressive  history  of  the  church  from 
his  day  to  the  end  of  time. 

From  its  peculiar  style,  it  has  been  misunderstood  by  some  not 
familiar  with  its  form  of  literature.  Others  have  rejected  it  be- 
cause they  could  not  explain  its  mysteries,  owing  to  a  lack  of 
personal  religious  experience;  and  others  again  through  ignor- 
ance or  bigotry  have  so  misapplied  its  symbols  as  to  confuse 
if  not  disgust  the  intelligent  reader.  "Happily,"  says  Farrar, 
*'  these  theological  romances  of  Apocalyptic  commentary  have 
had  their  day.  Like  a  thousand  other  phantoms  of  exegesis,  they 
have  vanished  into  the  limbo  of  the  obsolete.  They  may  linger 
on  for  a  time,  like  spectres  not  yet  exorcised,  but  they  are  doomed 
to  disappear  forever  in  the  broadening  light  of  a  sounder  knowl- 
e<lge." 

It  is  not  our  intention  to  attempt  any  explanation  of  these 
metaphors,  nor  to  give  any  analysis  of  the  doctrines  set  forth  in 
this  the  final  revelation  of  God  to  man,  but  to  furnish  a  concise 
history  of  the  churches  mentioned,  with  the  cause  of  their  decline, 
and  a  description  of  the  present  condition  of  the  cities  named. 

The  book  opens  with  a  salutation  of  the  seven  churches  of  Asia, 
which  were  the  special  objects  of  the  apostle's  solicitude.  They 
are  addressed  in  the  person  of  their  angel.  This  may  refer  to 
the  bishop  or  responsible  head  or  guardian  of  the  church.  Eph- 
esns  is  first  noticed,  being  probably  the  most  important,  and  is 
represented  as  yet  faithful,  but  waxing  cold,  having  lost  her  first 
love. 

'  Rev.  vii.  15. 


478  BIBLE     LANDS. 

EPHESUS. 

This  city,  situated  about  forty  miles  south  of  Smyrna,  was 
the  ancient  capital  of  Ionia,  and  for  centuries  the  metropolis  of 
Asia  Minor.  Among  the  splendid  edifices  for  which  Ephesus 
was  celebrated  was  the  magnificent  temple  of  Diana,  one  of  the 
seven  wonders  of  the  world.  There  were  three  or  more.temples 
erected  in  Ephesus,  at  different  periods,  to  this  goddess,  of  the 
same  dimensions  and  on  the  same  platform.  The  foundations  of 
the  first  were  laid  B.  C.  500.  This  was  the  temple  destroyed  by 
fire  the  night  Alexander  the  Great  was  born.  The  others  were 
destroyed  by  earthquakes.  Pliny's  statement  that  the  temple  was 
220  years  in  building  must  include  the  time  occupied  in  the  erec- 
tion of  all  three.  The  fragments  of  sculpture  found  among  the 
ruins  show  that  the  decorations  of  the  temple  standing  in  St.  John's 
day  must  have  been  exquisite  in  design  and  execution.  The  fig- 
ures sculptured  on  the  drums  of  the  columns  prove  the  highest 
degree  of  art;  and  the  gold  found  in  the  joints  of  the  marble  to 
cover  the  seams  indicate  great  wealth.  This  temple  was  the 
shrine  of  the  famous  statue  of  Diana,  which  the  credulous  peo- 
ple supposed  had  fallen  from  heaven,  and  "  whom  all  Asia  and 
the  world  worshipped."^ 

The  remains  of  this  grand  edifice,  the  very  site  of  which  had 
been  lost  for  centuries,  has  recently  been  discovered  after  a  search 
of  eight  years,  by  Dr.  J.  T.  Wood,  of  the  British  Museum.  It 
was  found  at  the  end  of  the  sacred  way,  a  colonnade  of  gorgeous 
tombs  about  one  mile  long,  leading  from  the  Magnesia  gate.  No 
young  mother  ever  rejoiced  more  over  her  first-born  than  did  the 
doctor  over  the  recovery  of  this  long  buried  temple.  The  earth- 
quake that  almost  destroyed  Smyrna,  in  178  A.  D.,  greatly  in- 
jured Ephesus,  by  filling  up  the  harbor  and  creating  a  pesti- 
lential morass  of  mud  and  rushes  over  the  rich  valley  of  the 

'Acto  xix,  27. 


EPHESUS. 


479 


Cayster.  So  that  now  most  of  tlie  ruins  are  covered  with 
rubbish  and  a  rank  gro^vth  of  vegetation,  no  one  Hving 
on  the  site  of  this  once  populous  city.     All  is  silent  as  the 

grave. 

Paul  visited  Ephesus  in  the  year  54,  and  the  large  the- 
ater, where  he  "fought  with  beasts,'"  and  stirred  up  the 
great  tumult  on  that  occasion,-  is  still  standing  on  the  side 
of  Mount  Prion.     It  is  partly  cut  out  of  the  mountain,  ellip- 


AMPHITHEATER    AT    EPHESUS. 

tical  in  form,  being  six  hundred  and  sixty  feet  in  its  greatest 
diameter,  and  capable  of  seating  an  audience  of  fifty-six  thou- 
sand spectators.  Timothy  was  the  firet  bishop  of  the  Church 
here,  one  of  the  seven  in  Asia,  and,  with  Luke,  is  supposed 
to  be  buried  here  ;  John,  the  "  beloved  disciple,"  also  preached, 
and,  it  is  said,  died  and  was  buried  here  after  his  return  from 
Patmos.     The  remains  of  his  old  church,  and  his  tomb  back 

'  1  Corinthians  xv,  32. 


480 


BIBLE   LANDS. 


of  the  altar,  are  still  pointed  out.  The  buildings  along  the 
quay  are  in  good  preservation,  and  the  steps  leading  down  to 
the  water  as  firm  as  when  Paul  with  Priscilla  and  Aquila 
landed  here  eighteen  hundred  and  twenty-five  years  ago.  It 
was  very  solemn  to  wander  among  the  ruins  of  this  desolate 
city,  to  see  the  stork  building  her  nest  on  the  stately  columns, 
to  stand  in  the  church  where,  perhaps,  John  the  beloved,  and 
Paul,  and  Timothy,  and  Luke  often  preached  a  pure  gospel 
to  assembled  multitudes,  and  to  think  that  the  Epistle  to  the 


Ephesians,  now  read  throughout  Christendom,  has  no  one  to 
read  it  in  Ephesus !  She  lost  her  first  love,  and  her  caudle- 
stick  was  removed  forever. 

It  was  from  Ephesus  we  derived  the  word  Evangelist.  When 
about  to  build  this  city,  there  was  a  great  scarcity  of  good 
building  material.  A  shepherd  by  the  liame  of  Pixodorus, 
feeding  his  flock  on  the  neighboring  hills,  discovered  a  quarry 
of  fine  marble,  bringing  back  a  specimen.  He  was  received 
with  great  joy ;  his  name  was  changed  to  Evangelus,  that  is, 
bearer  of  glad  tidings,  and  divine  honors  were  paid  him.    Thus 


SEVEN    CHURCHES   OF   ASIA. 


m 


we  see  how  words  full  of  sacred  import  are  derived  often  Irom 
pagan  legends. 

SMYRNA. 

Smyrna,  which  is  only  mentioned  once  in  the  Scriptures,  as 
the  second  of  the  seven  churches,  is  a  beautiful  city,  beautifully 
situated  on  a  beautiful  bay,  about  forty  miles  north  of  Ephesus. 
It  long  was  the  chief  commercial  city  in  the  Levant,  and  hon- 
ored with  the  proud  distinction  of  being  the  "  Crown  of  Ionia," 
and  "  Ornament  of  Asia."     And  it  is  still  the  principal  seaport 


ANCIENT  COINS  OF  SMYRNA,  WITH  THE  HEAD  OF  CYBELE. 

for  Asia  Minor,  with  a  population  of  200,000,  of  whom  about 
30,000  are  Greek  or  Armenian  Christians. 

This  city  claims  a  high  antiquity  ;  was  founded,  it  is  said,  by 
the  Amazons  and  from  them  derived  its  name.  It  was  first  taken 
by  the  -^olians,  then  joined  the  Ionian  Confederacy,  afterwards 
became  a  Roman  colony,  and  finally,  after  many  changes,  a  flour- 
ishing city  of  the  Ottoman  Empire. 

In  178  A.  D.  Smyrna  w^as  almost  entirely  destroyed  by  an 
earthquake,  and  during  1883  experienced  a  similar  visitation, 
obliterating  many  of  her  old  landmarks.  Homer,  it  is  claimed, 
was  born  here,  and  among  her  numerous  pagan  temples  was 
one  dedicated  to  the  great  bard,  containing  a  statue  of  the  poet. 
A  colossal  head  of  Apollo  was  found  among  some  ruins  near  the 


482  BIBLE    LANDS. 

west  gate,  showing  that  lie,  too,  was  among  their  gods.  Many 
fragments  and  blocks  of  sculptured  marble  have  been  used  in 
building  the  modern  city,  and  it  seems  very  curious,  if  not  pro- 
fane, to  see  these  broken  statues  of  men  and  gods  of  finest 
Greek  art  built  in  the  walls  of  shops  and  dwellings  with  com- 
mon stone. 

Christianity  was  early  introduced  here,  and  under  Polycarp, 
a  disciple  of  St.  John,  and  first  bishop  of  Smyrna,  the  church 
greatly  prospered  and  is  commended  for  its  steadfastness  amid 
Jewish  persecutions. 

The  most  interesting  remains  of  antiquity  that  survive  the 
wreck  of  ages  are  the  Acropolis,  an  old  castle  on  the  hill  over- 
looking the  city ;  the  theatre,  where  many  Christians  were 
thrown  to  the  wild  beasts  and  others  burnt  at  the  stake;  and 
the  Stadium,  where  the  Olympian  games  were  celebrated  under 
Roman  emperors,  and  where  Polycarp,  probably  the  last  of  the 
apostolical  fatliers,  suffered  martyrdom  under  Emperor  Marcus 
Aurelius,  A.  D.  169.  The  venerable  bishop  in  his  eighty-sixth 
year  was  first  thrown  to  the  wild  beasts,  but  it  is  related  they 
would  not  devour  him.  The  infuriated  populace  then  tied  him 
to  a  stake  and  kindled  a  fire  to  burn  him,  but  the  flames,  accord- 
ing to  tradition,  formed  a  circle  over  his  head  and  would  not 
consume  him.  After  this  they  offered  to  spare  his  life  if  he 
would  but  throw  a  few  grains  of  incense  in  the  fire  as  an  offering 
to  the  Roman  emperor.  This  he  refused  to  do,  when  a  Roman 
soldier  pierced  his  heart  with  a  spear  and  the  spirit  of  the  saint 
took  its  flight,  tradition  says,  in  the  form  of  a  dove.  The  old 
Acropolis  is  still  standing,  and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  in  one  of  its 
crumbling  cells  Polycarp  was  once  confined.  An  ancient  mosque 
is  also  standing,  said  to  be  the  church  where  this  good  man  offi- 
ciated ;  and  a  cypress  tree  in  the  Stadium  is  said  to  mark  the  spot 


SEVEN   CHURCHfS   OF   ASIA. 


483 


of  his  death  and  burial.  His  memory  is  still  held  in  high  vener- 
ation by  the  Christians  of  Smyrna,  who  annually  go  in  solemn 
procession  to  his  tomb  and  the  place  of  his  martyrdom.  Truly, 
*  the  righteous  shall  be  in  everlasting  remembrance." 


PEKGAMOS. 


This  city  derived  its  name  from  Pergamus,  a  grandson  of 
Andromache,  and  was  situated  on  the  north  bank  of  the  river 


PERGAMOS 

Caicus,  about  sixty  miles  from  Smyrna.     It  was  a  city  of  great 

wealth  and  intelligence,  and  celebrated  for  its  extensive  library, 

which  rivalled  the  famous  one  at  Alexandria,  and  was  removed 

to   the   latter   place   by  Antony,   and   presented  to   Cleopatra, 

Queen  of  Egypt.     Parchment  was  first  manufactured  here,  and 

derived   its  name  from  the   place.     Many  ruins  of  its  former 

splendor,  such  as  temples,  theatres,  and  other  public  buildings, 

are  scattered  over  the  ancient  site.     Beautiful  columns,  capitals 
31 


484 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


and  other  antique  sculptures  of  the  purest  marble  may  be  seeD 
in  modern  buildings,  but  many  more  have  been  burned  inta 
lime.  Some  of  the  pagan  temples  have  been  remodelled  into 
Christian  churches,  but  all  are  alike  in  ruins.  The  old  church 
of  St.  John  is  roofless  and  dilapidated.  In  the  days  of  the  be- 
loved disciple,  the  church  in  this  city  was  commended  for  its 
fidelity  and  firmness  in  the  midst  of  severe  trials.  It,  however, 
finally  went  "  with  the  multitude  in  the  way  of  transgression." 
An  ancient  aqueduct  of  perfect  masonry,  600  feet  long  by 
forty  wide,  still  spans,  on  its  graceful  arches,  the  river,  irrigating 


VASE  OF   PEKGAMOS. 


the  city  and  adjacent  farms.  A  very  curious  vase,  badly  broken^ 
was  dug  up  here  among  some  ruins,  representing,  in  low  relief,  a 
race  on  horseback  by  torchlight.  The  temple  of  Minerva 
within  the  Acropolis,  which  crowns  the  hill  back  of  the  city, 
was  built  on  an  artificial  platform,  very  similar  to  that  on  which 
Solomon's  temple  stood.  The  wall  of  the  Acropolis  is  of  hewn 
granite,  and  on  the  southeast  angle,  still  standing,  at  least  100 
feet  high,  the  lower  courses  anchored  to  the  mountain  it^^elf,  so 
that  the  earthquakes  of  more  than  twenty  centuries  have  failed 
to  move  it  from  its  firm  foundations. 


SEVEN   CHURCHES  OF  ASIA.  486 

The  city  contains  a  population  of  40,000,  about  one  third  of 
whom  are  nominal  Christians.  The  cross  every-where  in  Asia 
Minor  is  overshadowed  by  the  Crescent,  and  very  little  of  the 
Gospel  is  preached  or  practiced. 

John,  in  his  message  to  the  church  in  Pergaraos,  says,  "  I  know 
thy  works,  and  where  thou  dwellest,  even  where  Satan's  seat  is." 
Rev.  ii,  13.  Among  the  magnificent  temples  of  this  city  there 
was  one  dedicated  to  -^sculapius,  who  was  worshiped  here  in 
the  form  of  a  living  serpent,  fed  in  the  temple  and  considered 
as  its  divinity.  May  not  the  Revelator  have  had  reference  to  the 
worship  of  this  god  of  the  medical  art,  in  his  address  to  this 
church?  "Thou  dwellest  even  where  Satan's  seat  is."  Pergamos 
was  a  city  of  splendid  temples  devoted  to  a  sensuous  worship, 
and,  as  the  serpent  among  Christians  is  regarded  as  the  symbol 
of  every  evil,  this  city  could  very  appropriately  be  called  "  the 
seat "  or  "  throne  of  Satan." 

THYATIEA. 

This  city,  noted  for  its  beautiful  dyes,  was  located  on  the  river 
Lycus,  in  a  rich,  well-watered  valley  abounding  in  oaks  and 
acacias,  and  on  the  Roman  road  leading  from  Pergamos  to 
Sardis.  Lydia,  the  seller  of  purple,  whose  heart  the  Lord  opened 
for  the  reception  of  the  truth,  and  whom  Paul  met  at  Philippi, 
was  a  native  of  this  city.  Appollo  was  worshiped  here  under 
the  name  of  Tyrimnas,  a  deified  King  of  Macedonia.  There  was 
also  a  temple  here  to  Artemis,  or  Diana.  Games  were  celebrated 
here  in  honor  of  Apollo,  Hercules,  and  even  Nero,  whose  head 
appears  on  the  coins  of  that  period.  Eastern  Europe  is  supplied 
with  leeches  from  this  place.  They  are  found  in  great  numbers 
in  the  small  streams,  and  are  gathered  by  a  curious  process ;  little 
children  wade  barefooted  throug-h  the  water  and  come  out  with 


486 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


their  feet  aud  legs  covered  with  leeches.  These  waters  are 
peculiarly  adapted  to  dyeing.  In  no  other  place  can  such  brill- 
iant scarlet  and  rich  royal  purple  be  produced.  From  several 
Greek  and  Latin  inscriptions  found  among  the  ruins,  they  appear 
to  have  had  at  an  early  day  in  Thyatira  trade-unions,  such  as 
bakers,  potters,  weavers,  robe-makers,  dyers,  etc. 


THYATIKA. 


Many  remains  of  antiquity  in  sculptured  marble  have  been 
found  built  into  modern  walls,  or  used  as  well-covers  and  water- 
ing troughs.  A  short  distance  from  the  city,  an  old  ruin  bears 
the  name  of  the  "  Palace  of  the  Csesars."  When  it  was  erected, 
or  how  it  derived  its  name,  we  are  left  to  conjecture.  The 
church  here  was  commended  for  its  charity  and  faith,  patience 
and  good  works,  but  is  warned  against  the  corrupt  influence  of  a 
woman  calling  herself  a  prophetess,  by  the  name  of  Jezebel  j 


SEVEN   CHURCHES   OF   ASIA.  487 

who  appears  to  be  the  wife  of  the  angel  or  guardian  of  the  church, 
as  a  proper  rendering  of  the  text  reads,  thy  wife  Jezebel.  She 
is  accused  of  teaching  false  doctrines,  and  seducing  certain  mem- 
bers of  the  church.  She  had  been  admonished,  but  did  not 
amend  her  ways,  and  is  now  threatened,  with  those  who  have 
shared  in  her  guilt,  with  some  terrible  judgment,  except  they 
repent  of  their  evil  deeds.  It  is  painful  to  see  a  living  man 
chained  to  a  putrid  corpse,  but  far  more  so,  to  see  the  angel  or 
bishop  of  a  Christian  church  wedded  to  a  profligate  woman. 
Many  devoted  ministers,  however,  have  had  this  sorrowful 
experience.  The  old  church  of  St.  John,  originally  a  pagan 
temple,  is  now  a  mosque,  with  a  tall  minaret,  as  may  be  seen 
on  the  right  in  our  illustration.  The  city  contains  a  population 
of  17,000,  mostly  Mussulmans,  only  a  few  Christians  being  left  to 
represent  the  church  to  which  the  beloved  apostle  sent  his 
prophetic  message. 

SARDIS. 

This,  the  capital  of  ancient  Lydia,  and  "Queen  City  of  Asia," 
was  situated  in  the  classic  valley  of  Hermus,  on  the  banks  of 
the  golden  Pactolus,  about  sixty  miles  east  of  Smyrna.  Sardis 
is  first  mentioned  in  history  716  B.  C,  and  its  last  king  was  the 
renowned  Croesus,  whose  great  wealth  is  proverbial.  The  fame 
of  this  king  drew  to  his  court  many  of  the  wise  men  of  Greece, 
among  them  the  great  Solon,  whose  interview  with  Croesus  is 
familiar  to  every  student  of  classic  history.  In  a  war  with 
Cyrus,  King  of  Persia,  the  army  of  Croesus  was  defeated,  his 
capital  taken,  and  he  made  prisoner.  The  King  of  Sardis  was 
condemned  to  be  burnt  to  death.  As  he  stood  before  the  pyre, 
he  was  heard  uttering  the  name  of  Solon.  Cyrus  inquired  what 
he  was  saying,  when  Croesus  repeated  the  substance  of  his  inter- 
view with  Solon,  "  That  no  man  should  be  deemed  happy  till  he 


488 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


had  finished  his  life  in  a  happy  way."  Cyrus  on  hearing  this 
changed  his  purpose,  and  not  only  spared  the  life  of  Croesus,  but 
made  him  his  personal  friend.  Sardis  was  a  city  of  great 
wealth,  luxury  and  sensuality.  Gold  and  silver  were  here  first 
coined  as  a  circulating  medium.  We  give  a  fac-sim'ile  of  one 
of  these  early  coins  representing  Hercules,  or  some  other  deity, 
in  a  chariot  drawn  by  winged  serpents. 

Nothing  could  be  more  desolate  than  the  present  general  ap- 
pearance of  Sardis ;  scarcely  anything  is  left  of  her  ancient  glory, 
ruin  and  poverty  everywhere.  No  golden  sands  are  now  washed 
down  by  the  classic  Pactolus,  no  temple  of  Jupiter  Olympus 


COINS   OF  SAEDIS. 


now  crowns  the  brow  of  Mount  Tmolus,  and  no  sages  now  come 
from  afar  to  behold  the  magnificence  of  Sardis.  After  the  battle 
of  the  Granicus  it  fell  into  the  possession  of  the  Greeks,  who  held 
it  until  conquered  by  the  Romans,  under  whom  it  long  continued 
one  of  the  first  cities  of  Asia  Minor,  but  successive  earthquakes 
and  Turkish  rule  have  laid  waste  this  fertile  valley  and  once 
opulent  city,  until  scarcely  a  soul  is  found  living  on  the  site  of 
ancient  Sardis.  Among  her  grand  edifices  may  still  be  seen 
traces  of  the  theatre,  stadium  and  great  temple  of  Cybele — 
"Mother  of  all  the  gods,"  and  great  goddess  of  the  eastern 
world.  Only  two  marble  columns  of  this  temple  are  standing, 
sixty  feet  high  by  six  and  a  half  feet  in  diameter,  and  these  are 


1^^ 

'.       '■■■•■■>!■ 

'v^3;A 

^^S  ' 

SEVEN    CHURCHES    OF    ASIA.  491 

half  buried  in  debris,  but  they  are  perfectly  beautiful,  of  the 
purest  louic  order,  and,  like  two  witnesses,  bear  testimony  to 
the  architectural  skill  of  the  nation  that  has  passed  into  oblivion. 
The  floor  of  the  temple  is  filled  in  to  a  depth  of  thirty  feet  with 
the  rubbish  of  ages,  so  that  only  about  one-half  of  these  two 
graceful  pillars  is  seen  in  our  engraving.  Their  capitals  are 
exquisitely  wrought.  The  Acropolis  was  on  a  spur  of  Tmolus, 
overlooking  the  city  and  plain.  The  natural  rock  on  the  south 
angle  of  the  citadel  is  almost  perpendicular  and  was  considered 
impregnable,  and  yet  proved  the  weakest  point  when  the  Per- 
sians laid  siege  to  the  city,  as  Croesus  failed  to  guard  this  spot, 
which  Cyrus  observing  under  cover  of  night  scaled  the  rock 
with  his  men  and  the  stronghold  was  taken. 

North  of  the  Acropolis  is  the  theatre,  four  hundred  feet  in 
diameter,  the  outlines  well  preserved,  and  the  retaining-walls 
nearly  perfect.  This  probably  is  the  one  erected  by  Alexander 
the  Great.  West  of  the  Acropolis  there  is  another  ruin,  with 
massive  walls  ten  feet  thick,  which  is  claimed  by  some  to  be  the 
royal  palace  of  Croesus,  though  there  is  nothing  to  establish  this 
fact.  The  most  impressive  remains  in  the  vicinity  of  Sardis  are 
the  numerous  mounds  known  as  the  "tombs  of  the  Lydian  kings," 
about  seven  miles  north  of  the  Acropolis  and  beyond  the  river. 
There  are  about  one  hundred  and  thirty  of  these  mounds,  and 
the  explorations  that  are  being  made  here  by  Mr.  George  Dennis, 
the  English  Consul  at  Smyrna,  will  no  doubt  lead  to  many  val- 
uable discoveries.  The  largest  of  these  tumuli  is  that  of  Alyattes, 
father  of  Croesus,  who  died  about  B.  C.  560.  Herodotus  refers  to 
it  as  a  wonderful  monument,  only  surpassed  by  those  in  Egypt 
and  Babylon.  It  is  a  mound  of  earth  on  a  stone  foundation, 
the  whole  being  two  hundred  and  twenty-six  feet  high,  and  about 
eleven  hundred  and  fifty  feet  in  diameter  at  the  base.     A  large 


492  BIBLE    LANDS. 

flat  circular  stone  ten  feet  in  diameter  with  a  raised  edge  crowns 
the  summit.  A  vault  or  chamber,  eleven  feet  long  by  eight 
wide  and  seven  in  height,  was  found  within,  built  of  marble,  the 
blocks  finely  dressed,  nicely  fitted,  and  held  together  by  clamps 
of  lead.  The  body  was  placed  on  a  stone  couch  inside  this  vault, 
the  floor  of  which  was  covered  with  ashes,  cinders,  bits  of  wood 
and  bones  and  fragments  of  pottery,  the  remains  probably  of  the 
funeral  sacrifices.  Similar  chambers  have  been  found  in  all  the 
other  mounds  explored.  In  some  glass  vessels,  earthen  water- 
jars  and  human  skeletons  were  found,  but  nothing  of  great  value, 
as  they  all  had  been  rifled  ages  before,  probably  during  the  Roman 
occupancy  of  the  country. 

But  the  ruins  of  greatest  interest  to  the  Christian  are  two 
churches,  one  very  old,  and  supposed  to  be  the  same  occupied  by 
the  few  worthy  Christians  who  had  "  not  defiled  tlieir  garments," 
living  in  this  city  when  St.  John  wrote  his  prophetic  message 
The  other  was  dedicated  to  the  virgin  mother  of  Christ,  and 
recent  researches  show  that  it  was  constructed  almost  entirely  of 
material  taken  from  the  temple  of  Cybele,  one  of  the  oldest  in  the 
world,  having  been  built  only  three  centuries  after  Solomon's 
temple. 

PHILADELPHIA. 

"And  to  the  angel  of  the  church  in  Philadelphia  write :  These 
things  saith  he  that  is  holy,  he  that  is  true,  he  that  hath  the  key 
of  David,  he  that  openeth,  and  no  man  shutteth ;  and  shutteth, 
and  no  man  openeth ;  I  know  thy  works :  behold,  I  have  set 
before  thee  an  open  door,  and  no  man  can  shut  it."  Rev.  iii,  7. 
This  city  was  founded  by  Attalus  Philadelphus,  king  of  Pergamos, 
B.  C.  133.  It  stood  twenty-five  miles  southeast  of  Sardis  on  the 
plain  of  Hermus,  the  richest  portion  of  Asia  Minor,  and  cele- 
brated for  its  choice  wines.     Its  Turkish  name  is  Allah  Shehr — 


SEVEN    CHURCHES    OF    ASIA. 


493 


**-City  of  God."  There  are  several  mosques  in  the  city,  one  of 
which,  with  a  minaret  attached,  is  pointed  out  as  the  church  of 
the  early  Christians.  Four  beautiful  marble  pilasters  that  once 
supported  the  brick  dome  of  some  edifice  now  in  ruins  are  sup- 
posed to  belong  to  the  ancient  Cathedral  of  St.  John,  and  one 
very  large  pillar  of  high  antiquity,  and  still  standing  erect,  may 
have  suggested  to  John  the  imagery  he  employs  in  addressing 


PHILADELPHIA. 


this  church  :  "Him  that  overcometh  will  I  make  a  pillar  in  the 
temple  of  ray  God,  and  he  shall  go  no  more  out :  and  I  will  write 
upon  him  the  name  of  my  God,  and  the  name  of  the  city  of  ray 
Ood,  which  is  New  Jerusalem."  Many  of  the  pillars  in  these 
pagan  temples  are  inscribed  with  the  name  of  the  donor  and  the 
name  of  the  god  that  was  worshipped  therein. 

Philadelphia  continued  to  be  a  place  of  considerable  importance 


494 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


down  to  the  Byzantine  age,  and  was  among  the  last  cities  in  Asia 
Minor  talien  by  the  Turks.  The  ancient  walls  are  standing  in 
places,  and  can  be  traced  their  entire  circuit  by  their  foundations, 
and  other  remains  of  the  old  city  of  "  brotherly  love."  The 
present  population  numbers  about  15,000,  about  1,000  of  whom 
are  Greek  Christians.  They  have  a  railway  now  running  from 
Philadelphia  to  Smyrna,  and  under  a  liberal,  progressive  govern- 


EtriNS  OF  LAODICEA. 


ment,  this  historic  land,  the  ancient  seat  of  so  many  powerful 
kingdoms,  could  be  made  as  productive  as  any  portion  of  Europe. 


LAODICEA. 


There  were  several  cities  of  this  name  in  western  Asia,  all  so 
called  by  Antiochus  II.  in  honor  of  his  wife  Laodice.  The  city 
referred  to  in  the  apocalypse  was  located  about  forty  miles  east 


SEVEN    CHURCHES    OF    ASIA.  495 

of  Ephesus,  on  the  river  Lycus,  near  where  that  stream  empties 
into  the  Meander.  The  place  was  utterly  destroyed  by  an  earth- 
quake in  1230  A.  D.,  and  still  lies  in  shapeless  ruins,  not  a  soul 
living  on  its  ancient  site.  Many  fragments  of  sculpture  have 
been  found,  but  its  most  beautiful  statues  and  other  works  of  art 
have  disappeared.  Two  exquisite  agate  pillars,  eleven  feet  long 
by  eighteen  inches  diameter,  and  a  great  number  of  richly  sculp- 
tured polumns,  like  those  at  Ephesus,  have  either  been  carried 
off  or  converted  into  lime.  The  principal  ruins  that  remain  are 
a  stadium,  in  good  preservation,  three  theatres,  one  of  which  is 
four  hundred  and  fifty  feet  in  diameter.  The  seats  are  marble, 
with  numbers  and  letters  cut  on  them,  designating  them  as 
reserved  or  private  property;  and  aqueducts  almost  perfect,  con- 
structed of  stone  pipes,  curving  over  the  hills  and  down  into  the 
valleys,  showing  that  they  were  acquainted  with  hydrostatic  law, 
or  of  water  finding  its  level.  Col.  Leake  says:  "There  are  few 
ancient  sites  more  likely  than  Laodicea  to  preserve  many  curious 
remains  of  antiquity  beneath  the  surface  of  the  soil,  its  opulence 
and  the  earthquakes  to  which  it  was  subject  rendering  it  probable 
that  valuable  works  of  art  were  often  there  buried  beneath  the 
ruins  of  the  public  and  private  edifices."  "  Nothing,"  says  Mr. 
Hamilton,  who  visited  the  place  in  1835,  "can  exceed  the  deso- 
lation and  melancholy  appearance  of  the  site  of  Laodicea ;  no 
picturesque  features  in  the  nature  of  the  ground  on  which  it  stands 
relieve  the  dull  uniformity  of  its  undulating  and  barren  hills ; 
and,  with  few  exceptions,  its  gray  and  widely  scattered  ruins  pos- 
sess no  architectural  merit  to  attract  the  attention  of  the  travel- 
ler." Yet  it  is  impossible  to  view  them  without  interest  when 
we  consider  what  Laodicea  once  was,  and  how  it  is  connected 
with  the  early  history  of  Christianity.  The  gospel  was  early 
introduced  here  and  a  strong  church  formed.     It  became  the  seat 


496  BIBLE   LANDS. 

of  an  archbishop,  and  several  councils  were  held  in  its  cathedral, 
in  one  of  which  a  system  was  adopted  for  supplying  villages  and 
small  societies  with  itinerating  ministers,  similar  to  the  system 
still  in  practice  among  the  Methodists. 

This  church,  the  last  of  the  seven  in  Asia,  is  appealed  to  in 
the  most  solemn  and  impressive  manner :  "And  unto  the  angel 
of  the  church  of  the  Laodiceans  write :  These  things  saith  the 
Amen,  the  faithful  and  true  Witness ;  because  thou  sayest,  I  am 
rich,  and  increased  with  goods,  and  have  need  of  nothing ;  and 
knowest  not  that  thou  art  wretched,  and  miserable,  and  poor, 
and  blind,  and  naked ;  I  counsel  thee  to  buy  of  me  gold  tried  in 
the  fire,  that  thou  mayest  be  rich."  Rev.  iii,  14-18.  The  church 
had  grown  proud,  and  lukewarm,  and  luxurious.  They  fancied 
they  were  safe,  and. yet  were  living  over  a  smouldering  volcano 
ready  to  burst  forth  and  engulf  them  any  moment.  No  state  is 
more  to  be  dreaded  than  that  of  carnal  security.  We  have  no 
evidence  of  their  repentance,  but  we  have  in  the  present  desolate 
condition  of  their  city  the  strongest  proof  of  their  continued 
apostasy  and  final  overthrow. 

Of  the  author  of  the  book  of  Revelation,  after  his  return  from 
Patmos  to  Ephesus,  very  little  is  known.  Tradition  mentions 
many  events  in  his  life  which  we  do  not  think  of  sufficient  inter- 
est to  repeat.  Clement,  of  Alexandria,  tells  us  of  his  special 
interest  in  the  younger  members  of  his  flock,  and  how  he  lovingly 
persuaded  a  young  man  who  had  apostatized  and  become  the 
leader  of  a  band  of  robbers  to  return  to  the  deserted  fold.  The 
most  reliable  writers  of  church  history  think  he  died  at  Ephe- 
sus in  the  third  year  of  Trajan,  A.  D.  100,  aged  ninety-four 
years.  Toward  the  close  of  his  life,  when  he  could  no  longer 
stand  or  preach,  it  is  related  the  disciples  would  carry  him  to  the 
church,  seat  him  in  the  pulpit,  and  if  he  could  say  no  more,  it 


ATHENS.  497 

was  his  custom  to  repeat :  "  Little  children,  love  one  another.% 
Thus  he  continued  to  jjreach  until  death  sealed  his  lips. 

Returning  to  Smyrna,  we  took  the  steamer  for  Greece,  and 
after  touching  at  Patmos,  Rliodes,  Scio,  and  other  beautiful 
islands  in  the  ^gean  Sea,  landed  at  Athens,  so  renowned  in 
classic  history,  for  centuries  the  great  seat  of  learning,  the  cen- 
ter of  civilization,  and  the  capital  of  the  first  Republic  in  our 
world's  history,  1068  B.  C.  Just  before  entering  the  harbor 
of  Piraeus,  the  port  of  Athens,  we  passed  over  the  scene  of  the 
celebrated  naval  engagement  of  Salamis,  and  could  distinctly 
see  from  our  vessel's  deck  the  hill  on  which  Xerxes  erected  his 
silver  throne,  from  which  he  witnessed  the  destruction  of  his 
vast  fleet,  and  with  it  all  his  ambitious  aims  of  conquest  in  Eu- 
rope. Close  by  the  light-house,  as  we  entered  the  bay,  a  rock- 
hewn  tomb,  over  which  the  sea  was  breaking,  was  pointed  out 
as  the  humble  grave  of  Themistocles,  the  hero  of  Salamis. 

During  our  visit  to  this  city  I  have  been  living  in  the  past — 
living  my  life  over  again — living  amid  the  stirring  scenes  of 
two  thousand  years  ago.  How  inspiring  to  stand  amid  the 
ruins  of  this  classic  city,  and  on  the  very  rock  where  the  great 
apostle  first  expounded  the  doctrines  of  "  Christ  and  the  resur- 
rection "  to  the  learned  Areopagites  I 

It  is  hard  for  me  to  realize  that  I  am  in  Athens,  but  far 
more  difficult  to  believe  what  I  really  see.  That  the  mountains 
that  tower  above  the  plain  are  Ilymettus,  and  Lycabettus,  and 
Pentelicus ;  that  the  temple  that  crowns,  like  some  airy  castle, 
the  Acropolis,  is  the  unrivaled  Parthenon  of  Phidias,  the 
votive  offering  of  the  gods  to  Minerva,  or  Athene,  erected  four 
liundred  and  forty-eight  years  before  Christ ;  that  the  few  tot- 
tering, broken  colunms  on  the  plain  are  the  last  of  one  hundred 
and  twenty-six  that  once  composed  the  gorgeous  temple  pf 


498 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


Jnpiter  Olympus ;  that  just  here,  where  I  write,  on  the  hill  of 
Colonus,  is  where  Sophocles  was  born,  and  the  celebrated  tem- 
ple of  Xeptune  once  stood — I  say  to  realize  all  this,  and  much 
more,  is  to  roll  the  ages  back  and  live  through  twenty  centuries 
in  a  day. 

We  were  especially  interested  in  visiting  the  cemetery  of  an- 
cient Athens,  dating  back  to  400  B.  C,  and  only  recently  dis- 
covered.    Some  of  the  monuments  were  very  fine  and  sugges- 


MAKS     HILL 


tive.  There  was  nothing  gloomy  in  the  expression  of  the 
dying,  but  rather  a  hopeful  look  ;  and  they  seemed  to  part 
with  their  friends  in  expectation  of  another  meeting  in  the 
great  hereafter.  They  were  generally  attired  as  if  about  start- 
ing on  a  journey,  some  shaking  hands,  others  distributing  me 
mentos  to  loved  ones  before  their  departure.  On  one  tomb  a 
young  lady  was  taking  a  last  look  of  herself  in  a  metallic  mir- 
ror— the  ruling  passion  strong  in  death.     On  another,  Charon 


ATHENS.  499 

was  represented  waiting  with  liis  boat  to  take  the  deceased 
over  the  river  Styx,  but  refused  to  start  until  the  price  de- 
manded was  paid,  and  was  holding  out  his  liand  for  the  money. 
Some,  who  had  not  the  required  amount,  were  silting  weeping 
-on  the  shore  as  if  their  hearts  would  break,  because  they  could 
not  enter  the  spirit  land  beyond.  They  all  carried  lamps  with 
them  to  light  up  tlie  dark  valley  they  were  entering.  How  we 
should  rejoice  that  Christ  has  hung  up  the  lamp  of  life  in  this 
dismal  region  of  death,  and  that  all  may  now,  through  his 
merits,  pass  safely  to  a  state  of  blessedness  beyond ! 

One  of  the  most  beautiful  monuments  still  standing,  and  of 
the  purest  Grecian  architecture,  is  known  as  the  "  Lantern  of 
Demosthenes,"  and  was  erected  in  honor  of  a  school-boy  who 
excelled  in  his  studies.  Very  little,  however,  of  ancient  Athens 
is  to  be  seen  above  ground.  A  modern  city  of  50,000  has  grown 
up  amid  the  ruins  of  the  old.  The  royal  palace  is  located  here, 
and  the  young  king  is  doing  all  in  his  power  to  restore  the  city 
to  its  ancient  splendor.  But  his  kingdom  is  small  and  poor,  and 
he  lacks  both  men  and  means  to  carry  out  his  plans.  He  is  not 
able  even  to  hold  his  own  subjects  in  submission,  and  bands  of 
brigands  rule  the  country. 

A  few  years  since,  a  part}'  of  English  gentlemen  M'ent  out 
from  the  hotel  we  were  stopping  at,  to  visit  the  battle-field  of 
Marathon.  They  were  expected  back  the  same  evening.  But 
not  one  of  them  ever  returned  alive!  They  were  waylaid  by 
the  robbers,  and  all  murdered  in  cold  blood,  because  the  ran- 
som of  $50,000  was  not  promptly  paid. 

Our  party  intended  visiting  the  same  locality,  but  the  Gov- 
ernment assured  us  that  there  were  not  soldiers  enough  in  the 
garrison  to  protect  us,  so  we  concluded  not  to  endanger  our 

lives  even  to  see  Marathon. 
32 


500  BIBLE   LANDS. 

I.  After  spending  a  delightful  week  rummaging  amid  the  ves- 
tiges of  this  ancient  metropolis  of  Greece,  enjoying  the  soft 
sunshine  and  dreamy  quietude  of  Attica's  loveliest  montli — 
visiting  the  monuments  of  art  and  power  on  the  Acropolis 
among  the  grandest  in  the  world — standing  on  Mars'  Hill,  so 
sacred  in  its  associations  to  the  Christian,  and  on  the  Pnyx, 
where  Demostlienes  and  Pericles  often  swayed  the  populace 
by  their  eloquence ;  strolling  through  the  deserted  courts  of 
the  Parthenon,  once  honored  with  the  presence  of  such  men  as- 
Solon,  Pythagoras,  Socrates,  and  Zeno ;  and  over  the  site  of  the 
Academic  groves,  where  Plato  and  Aristotle  taught  their  disci- 
ples, we  turned  our  faces  homeward,  and  bade  farewell  forever 
to  heroic,  classic  Greece. 

As  the  echoes  of  the  evening  guns  on  the  men-of-war  in 
the  bay  of  Piraeus  reverberated  along  the  shore,  and  the  flags 
dropped,  tinged  with  the  golden  hues  of  a  glorious  sunset,  we 
sailed  out  of  the  port  of  Athens  on  our  way  to  America  and 
home. 


CHAPTER  III. 

RISE  AND  FALL  OF   EMPIRES  IN  THE    LIGHT  OF   PROPHECY. 

Foretelling  Future  Events — The  Jewish  Prophets — History,  Prophecy  Fulfilled— 
Nebuchadnezzar's  Dream — Rise  and  Fall  of  the  Chaldean,  Persian,  Grecian, 
and  Roman  Empires — A  Little  Stone  Breaks  them  to  Pieces — Symbol  o! 
Christ's  Kingdom — Daniel's  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts — The  Little  Horn  of 
Mohammedanism — Makes  War  against  the  Saints — Pilgrimages  to  Mecca — 
Tomb  of  the  Prophet — Conflict  between  the  Crescent  and  Cross — The  Proph- 
et's Flag — To  Prevail  1,260  Prophetic  Days — Great  Battle  of  Armageddon — 
Overthrow  of  Islamism— The  Little  Stone  becomes  a  Mountain,  and  fills  the 
Earth  with  the  Glory  of  God. 

The  foretelling  of  future  contingent  events  belongs  exclu- 
sively to  God,  and  the  fulfillment  of  these  predictions  is  the 
highest  proof  of  their  divine  origin.  Many  of  the  Scripture 
prophecies  foretold  events  ages  before  they  occurred — events 
of  which  there  was  then  no  apparent  probability,  and  the  occur- 
rence of  which  depended  on  innumerable  contingencies.  Some 
of  them  are  of  vast  extent,  reaching  down  to  fhe  end  of  the 
world's  history. 

The  Jewish  prophets  were  a  class  of  holy  men  specially  in- 
spired to  reveal  the  purposes  of  God  in  relation  to  both  future 
and  current  events,  and  to  denounce  his  judgments  against  the 
wicked. 

Their  messages  were  received  either  directly  from  God,  or 

through  dreams,  visions,  or  trances,  and  were  delivered  to  those 

they  concerned  in  writing,  or  by  word  of  mouth ;  often  with 

miracles  to  enforce  them.     Many  of  their  prophecies  relate  to 

certain  persons,  cities,  or  nations,  which  had  incurred  the  divine 

displeasure;   others,    such  as  we  shall  more  particularly  notice, 

501 


602  BIBLE    LANDS. 

to  the  rise  and  fall  of  empires,  and  to  the  establishment  of 
Christ's  kingdom  in  the  world. 

Of  all  the  Old  Testament  prophets,  none  give  so  full  an 
account  of  the  political  changes  which  have  taken  place  among 
the  nations,  as  Daniel,  who  lived  in  the  seventh  centurj  before 
Christ,  and  foretold,  centuries  before  they  came  to  pass,  some 
of  the  most  astonishing  events  which  have  ever  occurred  ;  not 
only  under  types  and  figures,  but  with  all  the  precision  of  facts, 
giving  the  names,  dates,  and  every  particular. 

So  literally  have  the  predictions  of  this  prophet  been  fulfilled, 
that  some,  on  that  ground,  have  questioned  the  authenticity 
of  his  book,  alleging  that  his  prophecies  must  have  been  writ- 
ten after  the  events  transpired.  No  historian  relates  events  in 
more  exact  order  of  time,  and  his  revelations  cover  the  whole 
history  of  the  world  from  Cyrus  down  to  the  close  of  the  pres- 
ent dispensation. 

In  the  dream  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  as  explained  by  Daniel,  we 
have  clearly  set  forth  the  rise,  progress,  and  termination  of  the 
four  greatest  monarchies  of  earth,  which  have  been  so  cele- 
brated in  history,  together  with  other  mighty  changes  in  the 
political  state  of  the  world,  and  at  the  same  time,  the  origin 
and  nature  of  a  fifth  kingdom,  destined  to  absorb  all  the  others, 
and  to  which  there  should  be  no  end.  The  king  saw,  in  his 
dream,  an  image  exceedingly  luminous,  of  terrible  form,  and 
composed  of  different  substances.  The  head  was  of  fine  gold, 
the  breast  and  arms  of  silver,  the  thighs  brass,  and  the  legs 
iron.*  Nebuchadnezzar  was  greatly  troubled  in  his  mind  by 
this  v'ision,  and  his  own  wise  men  failing  to  tell  him  the  mean- 
ing of  his  dream,  he  sends  for  Daniel,  then  a  young  man  con- 
Daniel  ii,  31. 


NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S  GREAT  IMAGE.  503 

nected  with  the  Babylonian  court,  who,  under  divine  inspira^ 
tion,  proceeded  to  show  his  majesty  its  signification ;  the  in- 
terpretation of  which  we  also  are  now  able  to  understand,  since 
the  prophecy  has  become  history. 

The  '"''head  of  gold''^  represented  the  brilliant  kingdom  of 
Babylonia,  "  the  lady  of  kingdoms," '  "  the  beauty  of  the 
Chaldees'  excellency."  The  first  and  grandest  among  the  na- 
tions founded  by  Nimrod,  B.  C.  2233,  which,  under  Nebuchad- 
nezzar, Babylon's  greatest  king,  extended  over  all  Western 
Asia,  So  that  the  prophet  might  very  truthfully  say,  "  Thou, 
O  king,  art  tliis  head  of  gold." 

The  "  hreast  and  arms  of  silver "  denote  the  Medo-Persian 
empire  under  Cyrus  the  Persian,  who,  after  the  fall  of  Baby- 
lon, B.  C.  538,  and  the  death  of  his  uncle,  Darius  the  Mede, 
united  the  two  kingdoms  and  established  the  powerful  Persian 
empire  on  the  ruins  of  ancient  Chaldaea. 

The  "  thighs  ofhrass^^  apply  to  the  Grecian  and  Macedonian 
empire  under  Alexander  the  Great,  who,  in  his  victorious 
march,  not  only  conquered  the  Medes  and  Persians,  but  all  the 
countries  between  the  Adriatic  and  the  Ganges,  and,  according 
to  the  prophecy,  "  bore  rule  over  all  the  earth,"  there  being 
"  none  to  withstand  him." 

The  "  legs  of  iron  "  evidently  refer  to  the  Roman  monarchy, 
which  succeeded,  and  was  formed  out  of  the  wreck  of,  the  Gre- 
cian. A  strong  military  kingdom,  iron  in  nature,  invincible  in 
war.  The  feet  were  "  iron  and  clay,"  denoting  that  it  was  a 
mixture  of  strength  and  weakness,  of  good  and  bad  qualities, 
which  would  not  freely  mingle  nor  "  cleave  one  to  another,"  but 
become  weakened  by  conquest  and  be  easily  broken  to  pieces. 

'  Isaiah  zlvii,  5. 


604  BIBLE    LANDS. 

The  ^^ stone  cut  out  of  the  mountain^^  can  have  but  one 
meaning,  and  must  refer  to  the  "rock  of  our  salvation,"  the 
kingdom  of  Christ,  against  which  "  the  gates  of  hell  shall  not 
prevail."  Cut  from  the  mountain,  "  without  hands,^''  refers  to 
the  spiritual  nature  of  this  kingdom,  showing  that  it  "  is  not  of 
this  world," — not  of  human  origin ;  but  a  kingdom  which  the 
God  of  heaven  has  set  up,  an  everlasting  kingdom,  to  which 
there  shall  be  no  end.  Every  thing  made  with  hands  is  perish- 
able and  doomed  to  destruction ;  but  this,  being  a  spiritual 
kingdom,  and  not  made' with  hands,  "shall  stand  forever." 
This  little  stone,  after  striking  the  image  and  breaking  it  to 
pieces,  "  became  a  great  mountain,  and  filled  the  whole  earth."  * 
Thus  Christianity,  after  the  fall  of  the  Koman  Empire,  became 
a  great  power,  consuming  all  that  remained  of  the  four  great 
monarchies  of  earth,  leaving  scarcely  a  vestige  of  their  former 
greatness — nothing  but  desolation  and  ruin  to  mark  the  sites  of 
their  renowned  cities. 

These  empires  were  destroyed  in  the  very  order  foretold. 
First,  the  head  of  gold,  next  the  arms  of  silver,  then  the  thighs 
of  brass,  and,  finally,  the  legs  and  feet  of  iron  and  clay.  So  com« 
pletely  are  they  blotted  out,  that  none  of  them  are  to  be  found 
to-day ;  all  have  become  extinct,  and  only  live  in  history.  The 
Chaldeans  were  absorbed  by  the  Medes,  the  Medes  by  the  Per- 
sians, the  Persians  by  the  Greeks,  the  Greeks  by  the  Eomans, 
and  the  Romans  by  the  Goths  and  other  nations  into  which 
the  Roman  empire  was  divided. 

The  conversion  of  Constantine  was  a  severe  blow  to  pagan 
Rome,  and  his  edict,  A.  D.  331,  abolishing  idolatry,  speedily  es- 
tablished Christianity  throughout  the  empire.     And  ever  since 

*  Daniel  ii,  35. 


DANIEL  S   VISION.  507 

the  downfall  of  Rome  the  kingdom  of  the  stone  has  been  gathr 
ering  strength  from  year  to  year,  and  it  will  continue  to  in- 
crease from  century  to  century,  until  all  "  the  kingdoms  of  thi& 
world  are  become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord,  and  of  his  Christ ; 
and  he  shall  reign  for  ever  and  ever."  *   , 

It  will  be  observed  that  "  the  feet  and  toes  of  this  image  " 
were  iron  and  clay,  and  after  it  was  broken  these  formed  a 
separate  kingdom,  a  mixture  of  iron  and  clay,  or  truth  and  er- 
ror. This,  it  would  seem,  refers  to  the  rise  of  the  Mohammed- 
an power,  or  the  Saracenic  Caliphate,  which  was  a  mixture  of 
many  races,  and  a  part  of  the  dismembered  Roman  Empire. 

Fifty  years  later,  when  Daniel  was  in  the  palace  at  Shushan, 
the  summer  residence  of  the  Persian  kings,  being  nearer  the 
mountains  and  cooler,  he  himself  had  a  vision  of  the  same  im- 
port, under  the  symbol  of  four  beasts,  which  were  to  represent 
more  fully  the  order,  succession,  and  character  of  these  four 
great  monarchies. 

"  The  first  was  like  a  lion,  and  had  eagle's  wings ; " '  this 
applies  to  Babylonia,  in  her  great  strength  and  glory,  after  the 
conquest  of  Assyria.  The  symbol  of  her  kings  and  deities  was 
the  human-headed  winged  lion,  which  may  still  be  seen  guard- 
ing the  entrance  to  her  ruined  temples  and  palaces.  The 
wings,  however,  are  represented  as  "  plucked,"  which  refers  to 
the  decline  of  the  empire  ;  she  is  no  longer  to  soar  above  the 
nations,  has  already  lost  Lydia,  Media,  and  Persia.  Her  last 
king  is  now  upon  the  throne,  and  soon  "  the  beauty  of  the 
Chaldees'  excellency  "  will  fade  forever  from  the  earth. 

The  next  was  a  ram  with  "  two  boms." '  These  horns  sym- 
bolize power,  authority,  dominion.     One  of  these  horns  "  was 

'  Revelation  xi,  15.         "  Daniel  vii,  4.        *  Daniel  viii,  3. 


508  BIBLE    LANDS. 

higher  than  the  other,"  and  the  liigher  one  "  came  up  last.'* 
This  higher  horn  clearly  refere  to  Cyrus  the  Persian,  who  came 
up  after  Darius  the  Mede,  but  soon  towered  above  him.  We 
have  here  represented  the  two  kingdoms  of  Media  and  Persia 
united  under  Cyrus,  who,  like  a  ram,  pushes  his  victories  in 
every  direction,  "  according  to  his  will."  The  ram  was  long 
the  emblem  of  Persia ;  the  golden  diadem  of  the  empire  was 
ornamented  with  rams'  horns ;  and,  what  seems  strange,  among 
the  sculptures  at  Persepolis,  the  old  capital,  may  still  be  seen 
the  ram's  head  with  two  horns,  one  liigher  than  the  other. 

Then  "  a  he-goat  came  from  the  west,"  with  "  a  notable  horn," 
and  ran  at  the  ram  in  "  the  fury  of  his  power,"  breaking  his 
two  horns  and  casting  him  to  the  ground,  "and  there  was 
none  that  could  deliver  the  ram  out  of  his  hand." '  All  which 
clearly  applies  to  Alexander  the  Great,  who  broke  to  pieces 
the  Persian  Empire,  and  whose  conquests  were  so  rapid  he 
seemed  to  fly,  and  there  was  no  power  that  could  stand  before 
him.  Alexander's  victories  over  the  Persians  at  the  Granicus, 
at  Issus,  and  at  Arbela,  were  as  easy  as  they  were  rapid  and 
decisive.  "  Therefore  the  he-goat  waxed  very  great,"  having 
conquered  all  the  world  in  twelve  years,  when  suddenly  "  the 
great  horn  was  broken,"  but  not  in  battle,  Alexander  dying 
a  natural  death,  in  the  zenith  of  his  glory  and  power, 
B.  C.  323. 

After  this  a  fourth  beast  apj)eared,  exceedingly  terrible,  with 
"  great  iron  teeth,"  "  nails  of  brass,"  and  "  ten  horns."  '  All 
admit  that  this  monster  represents  the  Roman  monarchy ;  ex- 
ceedingly strong  and  fierce,  ojjpressing  her  subjects,  and  de 
vouring  the  nations  she  conquered.     The  horns  denote  the  ten 

'  Daniel  viii,  7.         *  Daniel  vii,  7-23. 


FALL   OF   THE   GRECIAN    EMPIRE.  609 

kingdoms  out  of  wliicli  the  empire  was  formed,  and  the  great 
extent  of  ber  dominions. 

These  beasts  are  represented  as  coming  up  out  of  a  troubled 
sea,  indicating  that  these  monarchies  arose  from  the  disturljed 
state  of  society,  political  storms,  civil  wars  or  revolutions, 
brought  about  by  ambitious  men.  The  Almighty,  however, 
overrules  all  these  warring  elements  for  his  own  glory,  and  in 
due  time  sets  up  his  kingdom  of  righteousness  and  truth,  that 
is  to  control  the  destiny  of  our  world. 

After  the  goat's  "  notable  horn  "  was  broken,  or  the  death  of 
*'  the  king  of  Grecia,"  '  there  came  up  four  c»thers,  "toward  the 
four  winds  of  heaven  ;"  plucking  up  and  dividing  Alexander's 
kingdom,  but  "  not  to  his  posterity."  *  Ko  one  was  ever  more 
ambitious  to  leave  a  numerous  family  behind  him,  and  yet  it 
is  a  singular  fact  that  all  the  near  relatives  of  this  great  general 
cither  died  or  were  cruelly  murdered  within  a  short  time  of 
his  own  death,  so  that  none  of  his  own  kindred  were  left  to  in- 
herit the  vast  dominions  he  conquered  with  his  sword.  Those 
who  succeeded  him  were  four  of  his  generals  :  Cassander, 
toward  the  west,  in  Europe ;  Lysimachus,  toward  the  north, 
in  Asia  Minor;  Ptolemy,  toward  the  south,  in  Eg3'pt ;  and 
Seleucus,  toward  the  east,  in  Syria  and  Persia ;  forming  f(»ur 
strong  kingdoms,  all  of  which,  subsequently,  were  absorbed  by 
the  fourth  monarchy. 

Out  of  one  of  these  horns  that  sprang  from  the  broken 
*'  notable  horn,  "  there  "  came  forth  a  little  horn,"  ^  plucking 
*'  up  by  the  roots  "  three  of  the  horns  belonging  to  tlie  beast 
with  ten  horns.  This  prophecy  has  generally  been  applied  to 
the  papal  power,  but  undoubtedly  refers  to  the  rise  of  Moham- 

'  Daniel  viii,  21.  '  Daniel  xi,  4.  *  Daniel  viii,  9. 


510  BIBLE   LANDS. 

medanism,  which  arose  after  the  "  stone  "  had  struck  the  feet 
of  the  great  image,  and  "  plucked  up "  Arabia,  Egypt,  and 
Syria — three  Roman  provinces — from  the  shattered  empire  of 
the  Caesars. 

This  "  little  horn,"  or  crescent,  had  "  eyes  like  the  eyes  of 
man," '  denoting  that  it  was  a  far-seeing,  sagacious,  cun- 
ning hierarchy,  a  religious,  military  despotism,  formed  out  of 
the  feet  of  the  broken  image,  which  were  '•  part  of  clay,  and 
part  of  iron ; "  hence,  it  was  a  mixture  of  strength  and  weak- 
ness, religion  and  politics,  truth  and  error.  Though  Moham- 
med taught  some  important  truths,  he  gave  to  the  world  noth- 
ing good  which  Christ  had  not  given  centuries  before.  It 
appears  that  this  system  was  formed  out  of  the  "feet  and 
toes"  of  Nebuchadnezzar's  image;  and  it  at  least  is  a  curious 
fact  that  the  Ottoman  Empire,  the  seat  of  this  hierarchy,  has 
always  been  governed  by  Pashas,  tlie  meaning  of  which  is, 
"  the  feet  of  the  Shah." 

Though  little  at  first,  it  "waxed  exceedingly  great  toward  the 
south,  and  toward  the  east,  and  toward  the  pleasant  land," 
that  is,  in  Egypt,  Arabia,  and  Palestine,  making  "  war  against 
the  saints,  and  prevailing  against  them ;  "  casting  "  down  the 
truth  to  the  ground,"  and  taking  away  "  the  place  of  his  sanc- 
tuary," which  is  literally  true  of  Islamism.  All  her  conquests 
have  been  by  the  sword,  and  there  is  no  bloodier  chapter  in 
history  than  the  wars  of  Mohammed  and  his  successors  against 
the  followers  of  Christ. 

Mohammed  was  born  at  Mecca,  A.  D.  570,  but  died  and  was 
buried  at  Medina,  200  miles  north  of  Mecca.  His  tomb  is  in 
the  south-east  corner  of  an  old  mosque,  inclosed  with  a  silver 
railing,  and  overhung  with  a  green  velvet  pall,  richly  wrought 

>  Chap,  vii,  8. 


MOHAMMED  S  TOMB.  513 

in  gold  and  silver.  Suspended  over  his  grave  is  a  gorgeous 
chandelier,  a  present  from  the  Sultan,  hung  with  sparkling 
prisms.  Large  wax  candles  stand  in  golden  sockets  on  the  right 
and  left,  and  the  whole  effect  is  most  solemn  and  impressive. 
Caliph  Omar,  his  successor,  lies  buried  by  his  side.  Pilgrimages 
are  annually  made  to  his  tomb  and  to  Mecca  by  pious  Moslems 
from  all  parts  of  the  East.  They  come  in  caravans,  often  many 
thousands  together,  from  the  remotest  parts  of  Asia,  Africa, 
and  Europe,  under  the  superstitious  belief  that  their  salvation 
depends  on  seeing  the  tomb  of  their  great  Prophet. 

The  principal  object  of  interest  at  Mecca  is  a  building  about 
forty  feet  square  by  fifty  high,  known  as  the  Kaaba,  that  stands 
in  the  center  of  the  great  mosque,  and  is  said  to  have  been  built 
by  Abraham.  It  is  also  claimed  that  Ishmael  is  buried  here, 
and  that  here  God  manifested  himself  to  the  patriarchs  of  old. 
One  thing  is  certain,  this  place  has  long  been  regarded  with 
religious  awe,  and  was  a  seat  of  worship  for  a  thousand  years  be- 
fore Mohammed  was  born.  The  Kaaba,  of  which  very  little 
is  known,  is  covered  like  a  coffin  with  a  black  pall ;  and  about 
five  feet  from  the  ground,  inserted  in  the  outer  wall,  is  a  black 
stone  seven  inches  in  diameter,  of  irregular  shape,  and  sup- 
posed by  the  credulous  to  possess  miraculous  powers.  This 
stone,  said  to  have  fallen  from  heaven,  and  which  looks  very 
much  like  an  aerolite,  the  pilgrims  kiss  after  bathing  and 
marching  around  the  shrine  seven  times,  dressed  in  robes  of 
spotless  white.  Tliis  completes  their  pilgrimage,  and  they  re- 
turn home  to  die,  feeling  that  the  great  end  of  life  with  them 
has  been  attained.  Many  never  live  to  return  to  their  native 
land,  and  some  in  their  superstition  put  out  their  sight,  that 
they  may  die  with  the  vision  of  the  Kaaba  before  them. 


514  BIBLE   LANDS. 

Moliamniedanism  is  still  a  great  power,  prevalent  througlioiit 
the  Orient.  Xot  less  than  one  hundred  and  eighty  millions  of 
our  race  daily  turn  their  faces  toward  Mecca  when  they  pray. 
The  Sultan  of  Turkey,  who  is  regarded  by  all  good  Moslems  as 
*'the  shadow  of  God  on  earth,"  is  the  civil  head  of  this  vast 
host,  and  the  Shereef  of  Mecca  is  their  high-priest  or  spiritual 
head.  They  are  all  the  avowed  enemies  of  the  Cross,  and  as 
intolerant,  fanatical,  and  blood-thirsty  as  in  the  days  of  the 
Caliphs.  This  is  the  religious  element  in  the  Eastern  question, 
and  will  be  the  great  difficulty  in  the  settlement  of  that  ques- 
tion. Christianity  and  Islamism  can  never  compromise  or 
combine.  They  hopelessly  diverge  from  each  other  in  precept 
and  practice.  One  is  cruel  and  oppressive,  blasting  every  thing 
it  touches,  and  can  only  live  by  blood.  When  it  ceased  con- 
quering by  the  sword  it  began  to  decline  and  relapse  into 
barbarism.  The  other  is  liberal  and  progressive,  elevating 
and  ennobling  man ;  makes  all  its  conquests  by  love,  and 
carries  with  it,  wherever  it  goes,  peace,  prosperity,  and  civil- 
ization. 

Naturally  the  Mussulman  is  docile  and  submissive,  but,  when 
fired  by  religious  fanaticism,  his  frenzy  knows  no  bounds.  It 
was  this  enthusiasm  that  carried  the  Crescent  to  the  gates  of 
Vienna,  and  planted  it  on  the  walls  of  Granada  ;  and  for  cent- 
uries this  delusion  hung  like  a  death  pall  over  southern  Europe, 
and  seemed  destined  to  sweep  every  thing  before  it. 

Some  timid  persons  apprehend  danger  from  the  same  source 
in  the  near  future.  The  Moslems  still  claim  to  have  the  "  Flag 
of  the  Prophet,"  a  faded  green  silk  banner,  with  a  few  texts 
from  the  Koran  upon  it,  which  is  said  to  be  the  same  carried 
by  Mohammed  in  his  wars.     It  is  the  sacred  standard  of  their 


THE  FLAG  OF  TflE  PROPHET.  515 

faith,  and  is  regarded  by  the  superstitious  as  possessing  some 
magic  power,  and  if  unfurled  "  would  set  the  whole  world 
ablaze."  It  should  be  black,  for  it  is  a  banner  of  blood,  allows 
no  mercy  to  be  shown,  and  when  thrown  to  the  breeze  every 
follower  of  the  Prophet,  under  the  penalty  of  eterr.al  punish- 
ment, is  required  to  take  up  arms  and  die  if  necessary  in  defense 
■of  his  religion. 

Several  things,  however,  assure  us  that  there  is  no  immediate 
■danger  to  be  feared  from  this  source.  First,  the  flag  itself, 
-which  is  kept  in  the  Mosque  of  St.  Sophia,  is  so  old  and  rotten 
it  would  not  bear  unfurling,  and  is  not  likely  ever  again  to  be 
taken  from  its  golden  case  to  call  the  faithful  to  arms.  Then, 
their  own  internal  dissensions,  the  numerous  sects  and  factions 
into  which  the  followers  of  Islam  are  divided,  and  the  vast 
territory  they  occupy,  being  scattered  over  three  continents, 
tend  greatly  to  weaken  their  influence.  And,  flnally,  the 
greater  intelligence,  wealth  and  power  of  the  Christian  na- 
tions, especially  England,  with  her  powerful  navy,  in  possession 
of  Gibraltar,  Malta,  Cyprus,  Egypt,  Aden,  and  India,  can  effect- 
ually prevent  any  combined  aggressive  movement  from  this 
quarter. 

This  whole  system  of  antichrist,  like  the  kingdoms  preced- 
ing it,  is  to  be  overthrown  and  absorbed  by  the  Messiah's  king- 
dom. According  to  the  prophecy  it  was  to  prevail  "until 
judgment  was  given  to  the  saints,"  *  which  may  refer  to  the 
:final  verdict  to  be  rendered  by  the  Christian  powers  of  Europe, 
-who  are  to  sit  in  judgment  on  this  whole  Eastern  question,  and 
Administer  on  the  "  sick  man's  "  estate.  "  The  end  shall  be  at 
ihe  time   appointed;'"   when  "the  judgment  shall  sit,  and 

'  Daniel  vii,  22.         «  Daniel  xi,  27. 
3» 


616  BIBLE  LANDS. 

\ 

thej  shall  take  away  his  dominion,  and  it  shall  be  given  to  the 
people  of  the  saints  of  the  Most  High,  whose  kingdom  is  an 
everlasting  kingdom." ' 

Its  duration  was  limited  to  1260  prophetic  days,'  or  years,  a 
day  answering  for  a  year,  and  if  we  add  this  number  to 
A.  D.  622,  the  Mohammedan  Hegira,  or  time  of  the  Prophet's 
flight  from  Mecca,  we  have  as  our  resultant  the  year  1882,  aa 
the  period  for  the  downfall  of  this  hierarchy.  This  is  the 
Jewish  mode  of  reckoning,  or  thirty  days  to  the  month.  Our 
mode  of  computation  would  make  a  few  years  difference :  or  if 
we  date  our  calculations  from  Mohammed's  return  to  Mecca, 
it  would  add  six  years  to  our  estimate.  From  the  obscurity  of 
prophecy  previous  to  its  fulfillment,  we  are  cautioned  not  to 
assign  the  date  of  future  events  too  confidently.  It,  however,, 
is  only  a  question  of  time,  not  of  fact.  "  The  time  of  the  end 
shall  come ; "  and  many  things  appear  to  indicate  the  speedy 
fall  of  the  Ottoman  Empire,  the  only  centralizing  power  of 
Mohammedanism. 

Daniel,  in  closing  up  his  prophcies  relating  to  the  kingdomft 
of  this  world,  foretold  occurrences  wliich  have  not  been  fully 
understood,  but  which,  we  think,  clearly  apply  to  the  Turkish 
power  and  current  events.  For  instance,  "  The  ships  of  Chit- 
tim  shall  come  against  him :  therefore  he  shall  be  grieved."  * 
Any  one  who  will  examine  this  prophecy  touching  the  "  king  of 
the  north"  invading  the  south,  taking  the  "fenced  cities,"  lay- 
ing his  "  hand  on  Egypt,"  and  devouring  the  "  glorious  land,"' 
will  find  that  reference  is  had  to  the  Turkish  conquest  of  these 
countries,  and  that  Cyprus  is  the  Chittim  of  the  Scriptures. 
This  island  is  now  an  English  colony,  and,  what  seems  singu.- 

>  Daniel  vii,  26,  27.         *  Daniel  vii,  25.  »  Daniel  xi,  30. 


PROPHECY  FULFILLED.  517 

lar,  the  sliips  that  lately  bombarded  Alexandria  came  from 
Chittim,  greatly  to  the  grief  and  indignation  of  the  Sultan. 

"  But  tidings  out  of  the  east  and  out  of  the  north  shall 
trouble  him."  *  Xothing  has  given  the  Porte  more  trouble  of 
late  than  the  Russian  advance  on  Harat  and  the  other  move- 
ments of  the  great  Bear  in  the  east  and  north,  closing  in  upon 
him  on  every  hand.  "Therefore  he  shall  go  forth  with  great 
fury  to  destroy,  and  he  shall  plant  the  tabernacle  of  his  palace 
between  the  seas  in  the  glorious  holy  mountain."  '  This  would 
indicate  the  Sultan's  retreat  from  Constantinople  to  some  place 
in  Palestine,  perhaps  Jerusalem,  where  he  will  make  his  last 
stand.  This  would  be  "  between  the  seas,"  and  in  "  the  holy 
mountain" — Moriah — where  Solomon's  glonous  temple  once 
stood,  and  from  which,  according  to  the  legend,  Mohammed 
ascended  to  heaven.  But  this  will  only  be  for  a  brief  period. 
His  palace  being  nothing  but  a  "  tabernacle,"  a  temporary 
structure,  and  his  days  numbered.  "  Yet  he  shall  come  to  his 
end  and  none  shall  help  him ; "  England  and  France  have  helped 
him  out  on  other  occasions,  but  now  all  his  allies  desert  him, 
and  the  kingdom  of  the  Crescent,  that  has  desolated  the  Holy 
Land  for  more  than  a  thousand  years,  and  laid  waste  the  fairest 
portion  of  our  globe,  shall  speedily  come  to  a  shameful  end. 

"  And  at  that  time  shall  Michael  stand  up,  the  great  prince 
which  standeth  for  the  children  of  thy  people ;  and  there 
shall  be  a  time  of  trouble,  such  as  never  was  since  there  was  a 
nation."  ^  The  time  of  trouble  here  alluded  to  may  refer  to 
the  great  final  struggle  between  the  Crescent  and  the  Cross — 
"  Gog  and  Magog  " — that  is  to  witness  the  signal  overthrow  of 
antichrist,  and   the  triumph  of  the  Redeemer's  kingdom  on 

*  Dauiel  xi,  44.         ^  Daniel  xi,  45.         ^  Daniel  xii,  1. 


618  BIBLE   LANDS. 

earth.  Michael  the  archangei,  who  has  always  been  the  pro- 
tector of  God's  people,  now  takes  the  field  and  commands  the 
Christian  host.  This  last  great  battle  will  probably  take  place 
at  Megiddo,  on  the  plain  of  Esdraelon,  the  scene  of  so  many- 
bloody  conflicts.  Here,  as  we  learn  from  the  hieroglyphic  in- 
scriptions on  the  walls  of  the  Temple  at  Karnak,  Thothmes 
III.,  before  the  exodus,  when  the  Canaanites  still  occupied 
the  land,  fought  a  great  battle,  and  he  gives  us  the  names  of 
one  hundred  and  nineteen  towns  he  conquered  in  Palestine 
during  that  campaign.  Here  Necho,  another  of  the  Pharaohs, 
seven  centuries  before  Christ,  on  his  march  to  Assyria,  defeated 
the  Israelites,  and  slew  Josiah,  the  wise  and  pious,  but  over- 
zealous,  king  of  Judah.*  Here  Barak  overthrew  the  hosts  of 
Sisera  with  their  "  nine  hundred  chariots  of  iron." "  Here,  also, 
Gideon  routed  and  put  to  flight  the  countless  army  of  the 
Midianites,  slaying  of  their  number  "  one  hundred  and  twenty 
thousand  men  that  drew  the  sword." '  And  here,  upon  this 
same  bloody  field  of  Megiddo,  where  the  armies  of  Israel  have 
so  often  met  their  foes  in  battle,  probably  the  last  great  con- 
flict of  Armageddon  *  is  to  take  place,  that  shall  witness  the 
destruction  of  God's  enemies  and  the  estabhshment  of  Christ's 
kingdom  throughout  the  world.  * 

^2  Kings  xxiii,  29.    ^  judges  ir,  13.    ^  Judges  viii,  10.    *  Revelation  xvi,  16. 


MAILED  KNIGHT  OB  CBUSADEB. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   CRUSADES:    THEIR   OBJECT   AITD   HEROES. 

Causes  that  led  to  this  Movement — Reverence  for  Holy  Places — Pilgrimages  to 
Jerusalem — The  Empress  Helena — Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre — Con- 
quest of  Palestine  by  the  Saracens — Cruel  Treatment  of  Pilgrims — Peter 
the  Hermit — His  Appeal  to  the  Christians  of  Europe — Pope  Urban  H. 
favors  the  Movement — Council  of  Clermont — The  PontiS's  stirring  Ad- 
dress— Godfrey  de  Bouillon — Antioch  and  Jerusalem  taken — Godfrey 
elected  King — His  Death  and  Burial — Origin  of  the  Knights  of  St.  John 
and  Knights  Templar — Subsequent  Crusades. 

"VTO  chapter  in  history  is  more  full  of  adventure  and  chivalry 
■^^  than  the  Crusades  or  holy  wars  of  the  eleventh  and 
twelftii  centuries,  for  the  recovery  of  the  Tomb  of  Christ  from 
the  Saracens.  And  as  they  are  so  intimately  connected  with 
Bible  Lands,  we  cannot  very  well  conclude  our  work,  without 
giving  a  brief  account  of  the  causes  which  led  to  this  movement, 
and  a  sketch  of  some  of  the  principal  actors  in  this  religious 
•drama.  Other  portions  of  this  book  were  written  from  personal 
observations ;  this  chapter  we  compile  from  the  best  authors  who 
have  written  on  the  subject. 

There  is  more  or  less  credulity  or  superstition  in  our  nature — 
an  innate  principle  of  reverence  for  sacred  objects — and  nothing 
stirs  the  human  heart  more  than  religious  enthusiasm,  especially 
when  allowed  to  run  into  wild  fanaticism.  It  was  this  supersti- 
tious reverence  for  holy  things,  and  passion  to  visit  the  hallowed 
scenes  of  human  redemption,  that  brought  about  the  bloody  wars 
of  the  Crusades.  It  is  computed  that  fully  two  million  Christians 
perished  by  slaughter,  hunger  and  pestilence,  during  these  un- 
necessary and  cruel  wars. 

521 


522  BIBLE    LANDS. 

Ever  since  Christiauity  became  an  established  fact,  pilgrimages, 
have  been  made  by  the  piously  inclined  to  the  Holy  Land,  either 
in  performance  of  some  vow,  or  to  see  the  places  consecrated  by 
the  presence  of  Christ,  and  where  God  was  manifested  in  the  flesh* 
Early  in  the  fourth  century,  with  many  others,  the  Empress 
Helena,  mother  of  Constantine  the  Great,  made  this  pilgrimage 
when  nearly  fourscore  years  old,  visiting  many  sacred  spots,  and 
arranging  for  the  construction  of  monumental  edifices  where  the- 
most  important  events  transpired.  Over  the  Tomb  of  Christ  she- 
ordered  the  erection  of  a  magnificent  church,  to  commemorate- 
His  death,  burial  and  resurrection,  portions  of  which  are  still 
standing.  After  two  years,  spent  among  the  scenes  hallowed  by 
the  sufferings  of  the  Son  of  God,  she  returned  home,  and  shortly 
thereafter  died.  The  visit  of  this  empress  to  Palestine  created; 
an  intense  interest  throughout  Europe  in  the  Holy  Land,  and 
pilgrimages  became  more  numerous  than  ever. 

The  story  that  Helena,  in  searching  for  the  Tomb  of  Christ, 
discovered  the  real  cross  on  which  Jesus  was  crucified,  is  all  aa 
*'  invention,"  without  any  foundation  in  fact.  The  empress- 
never  claimed  to  have  made  any  such  discovery,  nor  was  it  heard 
of  for  several  years  after  her  death.  Eusebius,  if  any  one,  would 
have  known  of  such  a  precious  relic,  as  he  was  present  at  the  dedi- 
cation of  the  church,  and  would  have  mentioned  it  in  his  address 
on  that  occasion  or  in  his  writings;  but  he  is  entirely  silent  upon 
the  subject;  nor  is  it  likely  that  a  wooden  cross  could  be  buried 
in  the  earth  three  hundred  years  without  decaying.  Then,  the 
law  required  all  such  instruments  of  death  to  be  burned  after  once 
used.  And  the  absurdity  of  Helena  putting  it,  for  safe  keeping,. 
in  the  church  she  ordered  to  be  erected  over  the  tomb,  will  appear 
fully,  when  it  is  known  that  she  died  eight  years  before  the 
church  was  completed,  A.  D.  335.     It  has  very  properly  been. 


PETER    THE    HERMIT.  523 

termed  "  The  Invention  of  the  Cross,"  for  it  is  nothing  more 
than  a  pious  fraud,  the  invention  of  after  years. 

When  Mohammedanism  became  a  power  in  the  East,  and  the 
Saracens  conquered  Palestine,  many  of  these  pilgrims  were 
cruelly  treated,  and  the  holy  places  desecrated  by  the  infidels  in 
the  most  insulting  manner.  This  conduct  on  the  part  of  the 
Moslems,  more  than  anything  else,  provoked  the  Christian 
nations  of  Europe  to  engage  in  a  war  for  the  recovery  of  Pales- 
tine. Peter  the  Hermit,  the  apostle  of  the  Crusades,  was  a 
native  of  France;  by  profession  he  was  a  soldier,  but  being  of  a 
religious  turn  of  mind  and  very  austere  in  his  habits,  he  with- 
drew from  the  army  and,  secluding  himself  from  the  world, 
spent  most  of  his  time  fasting  and  praying  in  the  solitude  of  the 
cloister.  But  his  active,  restless  spirit,  and  burning  zeal  for  his 
Master  and  religion,  were  not  satisfied  with  the  life  of  a  hermit, 
and  toward  the  close  of  the  eleventh  century  he  made  his  first 
pilgrimage  to  Jerusalem.  The  Moslem  was  in  power.  The 
crescent  of  Mohammed  waved  over  the  City  of  God,  and  when 
the  devout  recluse  saw,  with  a  bleeding  heart,  the  Holy  Sepul- 
cher  and  other  sacred  places  in  possession  of  the  infidel,  and  how 
Christians  all  over  the  Orient,  and  especially  the  pilgrims,  were 
treated  by  the  followers  of  the  False  Proj)het,  his  very  blood 
turned  to  fire,  and  he  then  and  there  conceived  the  project  of 
enlisting  the  Christian  powers  of  Europe  in  a  Holy  War,  for  the- 
recovery  of  the  Holy  Land.  On  his  return  to  the  West,  he  earn- 
estly presented  the  matter  to  Pope  Urban  II.,  who  as  eagerly 
espoused  the  cause.  A  Council  was  called  in  Clermont  in  No- 
vember, 1095,  of  representative  men  from  all  parts  of  the  con- 
tinent. A  vast  multitude  assembled  on  that  occasion,  all  animated 
by  the  same  spirit.  Princes,  ambassadors,  prelates,  and  other  dis- 
tinguished persons,  came  in  such  numbers,  the  city  was  not  able 


524  BIBLE    LANDS. 

to  entertain  them.  The  pope  himself  was  there  in  his  purple 
and  scarlet,  and  with  him  Peter  the  Hermit,  clad  in  his  uncouth 
garb.  It  was  a  cold  rainy  day  when  they  met,  but  neither  cold 
nor  rain  could  chill  or  dampen  their  ardor.  The  Hermit  was 
the  first  to  speak,  giving  an  account  of  the  condition  of  the 
Christians  in  Palestine  with  wonderful  effect,  electrifying  the 
entire  audience.  The  pope  opened  his  address  by  complimenting 
the  French,  calling  them  "A  nation  beloved  by  God."  He  then 
spoke  of  the  Saracenic  invasion  and  the  exploits  of  Charlemagne 
in  driving  them  out  of  France,  calling  on  them  to  show  their  valor 
and  chivalry  by  saving  Jerusalem — the  city  of  Jesus  Christ. 
When  the  pontiff  depicted  the  wretchedness  of  the  Eastern 
Christians,  and  perfidy  of  the  Mohammedans,  the  warriors 
present  clutched  their  swords  and  swore  in  their  hearts  to  avenge 
the  suffering  cause  of  Christ.  And  when  he  appealed  to  their 
religious  convictions  and  feelings,  by  saying,  "There  is  scarcely 
a  Christian  family  into  which  the  Mussulmans  have  not  brought 
mourning  and  despair;  our  bishops  have  been  delivered  over  to 
the  executioner ;  the  virgins  of  the  Lord  have  been  outraged; 
holy  places  have  been  despoiled,  until  God  has  no  longer  a  sanc- 
tuary in  His  own  city,"  the  whole  assembly  was  moved  to  tears, 
seeing  which,  he  continued,  "  Let  us  weep,  my  brethren ;  let  us 
•weep  over  our  past  errors ;  let  us  weep  over  the  captivity  of  the 
Holy  City !  But  evil  be  to  us  if,  in  our  sterile  pity,  we  longer 
leave  the  heritage  of  the  Lord  in  the  hands  of  the  infidel.  Why 
should  we  taste  here  a  moment's  repose  whilst  the  children  of 
Jesus  Christ  live  in  the  midst  of  torments,  and  the  queen  city 
groans  in  chains  ?  "  At  these  words  the  auditors  displayed  an 
enthusiasm  that  human  eloquence  has  seldom  inspired.  The 
assembly  arose  in  one  mass,  as  one  man,  and  with  one  voice  re- 
sponded, "It  is  the  will  of  God!     It  is  the  will  of  God!" 


THE   CRUSADES.  625 

'''Yes,  without  doubt,  it  is  the  will  of  God,"  replied  Urban. 
'*'  Let  these  words  be  your  war-cry.  Let  the  Cross  be  your 
standard.  Wear  it  upon  your  breast.  It  will  be  to  you  the 
surety  of  victory  or  the  palm  of  martyrdom.  It  will  unceas- 
ingly remind  you  that  Christ  died  for  you,  and  that  it  is  your 
duty  to  die  for  him." 

The  Council  adjourned  with  the  benediction  of  His  Holiness, 
after  providing  that  the  Crusade  should  start  the  following  Au- 
gust. In  the  meantime,  Peter  the  Hermit,  riding  on  a  mule,  feet 
bare,  head  uncovered,  clad  in  a  long  rough  cassock,  with  a  coarse 
rope  tied  around  his  lank  waist,  was  going  from  court  to  court, 
-city  to  city,  province  to  province,  crossing  the  Alps,  traversing 
Italy,  visiting  the  greater  portion  of  Europe,  telling  of  the  out- 
:rages  perpetrated  against  the  religion  of  Christ  by  infidel  dogs; 
holding  up  the  crucifix  he  had  carried  with  him  from  Jerusalem, 
.and  in  the  most  impassioned  manner  calling  on  all  to  join  in  the 
Holy  War.  His  preaching  powerfully  affected  all  classes.  The 
singularity  of  his  attire,  austerity  of  his  manner,  and  impressive- 
ness  of  his  eloquence,  influenced  all  hearts  with  the  zeal  that  was 
■consuming  his  own,  and  in  a  few  months  all  Europe  resounded 
with  the  war-cry  of  the  Crusaders.  So  great  was  the  eagerness 
to  join  in  the  enterprise,  and  so  impatient  the  crowds  that  re- 
sponded to  the  call  to  depart  at  once,  by  March,  1096,  three 
hundred  thousand  men,  of  every  condition  and  of  all  ranks,  were 
under  arms  clamoring  to  be  led  against  the  Infidels.  It  was  an 
armed  pilgrimage,  on  a  large  scale,  of  religious  fanatics — those 
joining  in  the  expedition  regarding  themselves  as  having  per- 
formed all  penances.  Their  insignia  was  a  red  cross,  which  was 
to  be  emblazoned  on  their  standards  and  worn  on  the  shoulder 
•or  left  breast.  Hence  their  name,  as  every  person  who  assumed 
ilie  cross  was  known  as  a  Oroise,  or  Crusader.     There  was  no  dis- 


626  BIBLE    LANDS. 

tinction  among  them,  the  rich  and  poor  serving  together  as  com- 
mon soldiers ;  an  army  of  religious  enthusiasts,  without  dis- 
cipline or  any  knowledge  of  military  tactics. 

This  advance  column,  under  the  leadership  of  the  Hermit  and 
Walter  the  Penniless,  started  for  Jerusalem  through  Germany, 
Hungary,  and  Bulgaria ;  and  yet,  sad  to  relate,  few  if  any  of 
that  vast  host  ever  reached  the  Land  of  Promise.  They  made 
no  provision  for  their  long,  perilous  journey,  presuming,  in  their 
fanaticism,  that  the  rivers  would  open  to  let  them  pass  safely 
through  ;  that  they  would  he  fed  with  manna  from  heaven,  as  the 
Israelites  of  old,  and  that  the  cities  of  their  enemies  would  fall 
like  Jericho  before  Joshua.  Those  that  were  not  slain  in  battle- 
became  a  prey  to  wild  beasts,  famine  or  pestilence.  Peter  thfr 
Hermit  was  among  the  few  that  escaped,  connecting  himself  with 
the  next  expedition,  and  was  present  when  Jerusalem  was  finally 
taken,  receiving  the  grateful  homage  of  the  victorious  army,  and 
in  return,  delivered  to  them  a  fervent  congratulatory  address- 
from  the  Mount  of  Olives.  This  is  the  last  mention  made  of 
his  name  in  history.  Nothing  further  is  known  of  this  remark- 
able man. 

Europe  was  shocked  at  learning  the  fate  of  the  advance  divi- 
sion of  the  Crusaders.  It  did  not,  however,  repress  her  holy- 
zeal,  but  served  to  rouse  her  chivalry  to  action.  The  feudal 
princes,  with  their  heroic  knights — ^young  men  trained  to  arms,. 
and  full  of  adventure — now  assumed  the  cross.  Castles  and 
lands  were  sold  to  raise  funds  to  equip  the  army.  Robert,  Duke 
of  Normandy,  and  son  of  William  the  Conqueror,  surrendered 
his  right  to  the  English  throne  to  raise  money  to  carry  on  the 
war.  Godfrey  of  Bouillon,  Kay  mond  Count  of  Toulouse,  Tan- 
cred,  and  many  other  noble  dukes,  counts  and  barons,  inspired 
with  the  same  spirit,  joined  in  this  Crusade.     The  world  never 


GODFREY    OF     BOUILLON.  527 

witnessed  a  finer  army  than  was  raised  in  a  few  months  for  this 
occasion.  It  consisted  of  one  hundred  thousand  cavalry — the 
very  flower  of  Europe — and  an  innumerable  multitude  of  infan- 
try', from  all  classes,  under  the  most  illustrious  officers. 

Godfrey  was  placed  in  command,  and  no  one  was  better  qual- 
ified for  the  position.  He  was  born  a  king  among  men — calm, 
brave  and  dignified,  practising  the  virtues  of  private  life  amid 
the  tumults  of  the  camp.  In  him  the  gentlest  manners  were 
united  with  the  firmest  spirit.  Mr.  Rich,  in  his  Biography, 
says :  "  He  not  only  signalized  himself  by  valor  among  the  val- 
orous, and  by  enthusiasm  among  the  enthusiastic,  but  he  showed 
also  disinterestedness,  probity,  skill  and  prudence,  which  were 
of  a  higher  and  rarer  order.  He  maintained  the  most  com|]jete 
discipline  among  his  division  of  the  Christian  army,  which  he 
brought  safely  to  the  appointed  muster-place  beneath  the  walls 
of  Constantinople  in  the  winter  of  1096.  By  his  sagacity  and 
firmness  he  prevented  hostilities  breaking  out  between  the  host 
of  the  Crusaders  and  the  Greek  emperor,  Alexius  Comnenus,  and 
in  the  spring  of  1097  Godfrey  led  the  Frankish  nations  into  Asia 
Minor  to  the  siege  of  the  capital  of  the  Turkish  Sultan  of  Nice. 
This  city  was  captured  after  a  bloody  siege,  in  which  the  j>ersonal 
valor  of  Godfrey,  as  well  as  his  generalshij),  was  frequently  dis- 
played. He  was  tall,  well  proportioned,  and  of  such  remarkable 
strength  and  dexterity  in  the  use  of  his  weapons  that  he  is  said, 
in  more  than  one  encounter,  to  have  cloven  his  foe  by  a  single 
sword-stroke  from  skull  to  centre."  After  Xice  was  captured 
the  Crusaders  marched  forward  and  defeated  a  Turkish  army  in 
the  great  battle  of  Dorylaeum,  reaching  Antioch,  in  Syria,  late  in 
the  autumn  of  1097,  and  at  once  laid  siege  to  the  place.  This 
city  contained  a  population  of  200,000  souls,  was  surrounded  by 
high  walls  and  a  deep,  wide  ditch,  which,  with  its  garrison  of 


528 


BIBLE    LANDS. 


30,000,  under  experienced  officers,  made  it  a  formidable  under- 
taking for  the  greatly  depleted  arnay  of  Godfrey. 

Antioch  was  founded  300  B.  C.  by  Seleucus  Nicator,  King  of 
Syria,  and  named  in  honor  of  his  father,  Antiochus.  It  was  con- 
sidered the  third  city  in  the  world  for  beauty,  wealth  and  jwpu- 
lation.  A  grand  street,  with  colonnades,  was  a  marked  feature 
of  the  city.     Pompey  enlarged  it,  and  Herod  the  Great  adorned 


ANTIOCH, 


it.  The  Christian  faith  was  early  introduced  into  Antioch  ;  here* 
the  disciples  were  first  called  Christians.  Acts  xi,  26.  This  was 
the  scene  of  the  early  labors  of  the  apostle  Paul,  and  from  here 
he  started  out  on  his  first  missionary  tour.  Acts  xiii,  2.  The 
saintly  Ignatius  was  bishop  of  the  church  here,  and  the  eloquent 
Chrysostom  was  a  native  of  this  city,  which  in  his  day  contained 
100,000  Christians.     It  was  also  an  important  place  in  a  military 


JERUSALEM   TAKEN.  629^ 

point  of  view,  and  the  leaders  of  the  Crusaders  felt  the  absolute 
necessity  of  occupying  the  position  before  marching  on  to  Jeru- 
salem. The  city  was  captured  on  the  3d  of  June,  1098,  after  an 
obstinate  resistance  of  seven  weary  months.  No  sooner,  how- 
ever, had  the  victors  taken  possession  of  the  place  than  they  in 
turn  were  besieged  by  200,000  Moslems.  The  condition  of  the 
Crusaders  became  terrible.  Famine  and  pestilence  were  slaying^ 
them  by  thousands.  Many  were  deserting,  and  others  despair- 
ing of  success.  When  it  was  rumored  among  the  dispirited  sol- 
diers that  the  holy  lance  which  pierced  the  side  of  our  Saviour 
had  been  found  under  the  altar  of  the  Church  of  St.  Peter,  in 
Antioch,  and  that  it  possessed  miraculous  powers,  Godfrey,  taking 
advantage  of  the  delusion,  led  his  men  in  a  sudden  sortie  upon 
their  enemies,  which  resulted  in  a  complete  victory.  The  sup- 
])()sed  presence  of  this  charmed  relic  in  their  midst  inspired  the 
Crusaders  with  fresh  courage,  and  such  prodigies  of  valor  as  were 
performed  that  day  were  never  seen  before. 

Their  cry  now  was,  "  On  to  Jerusalem  ! "  It  was  a  bright 
summer  morning  in  the  month  of  June,  1099,  that  the  remnant 
of  the  700,000  which  had  left  Europe  more  than  two  years  before 
came  in  sight  of  the  Holy  City.  After  giving  expression  to  their 
joy  in  exclamations  of  thanksgiving,  they  all  as  with  one  impulse 
fell  upon  their  knees,  and  poured  out  their  tears  on  the  sacred 
soil.  The  city  being  strongly  garrisoned,  several  weeks  were 
spent  in  preparing  for  the  attack.  On  the  eve  of  the  day  ap- 
pointed for  the  final  assault  the  whole  host  made  a  religious 
procession  round  the  walls,  carrying  crucifixes  and  chanting 
psalms  of  praise.  Then,  halting  on  Mount  Olivet,  they  all  joined 
in  solemn  prayer  invoking  divine  aid.  At  daylight  the  next 
morning  the  assault  was  made.  All  that  day  and  the  next  the 
battle  raged  with  fearful  carnage.     But  the  zeal  of  the  Crusaders. 


530  BIBLE    LANDS. 

was  indomitable.  The  walls  soon  began  to  crumble  and  fall 
under  their  ponderous  battering-rams.  Godfrey  was  among  the 
first  to  enter,  and  in  triumph  planted  the  cross  on  the  battlements 
of  Zion,  July  15th,  1099.  It  is  stated  that  Pope  Urban  II.  died 
of  joy  on  hearing  of  the  conquest  of  Jerusalem. 

We  shall  not  stain  our  pages  with  the  bloody  and  sickening 
scenes  which  followed,  showing  what  crimes  may  be  perpetrated 
in  the  name  of  religion,  and  to  what  excesses  fanaticism  may  lead 
us.  The  Latin  Kingdom  of  Palestine  was  at  once  organized,  and 
€ight  days  after  the  sacking  of  the  city  Godfrey  was  unanimously 
elected  King  of  Jerusalem,  but  refused  to  be  crowned,  alleging  as 
a  reason,  he  could  not  consent  to  receive  a  crown  of  gold  where 
his  Saviour  was  compelled  to  wear  a  crown  of  thorns,  asking  for 
himself  no  higher  honor  than  "Defender  of  the  Tomb  of  Christ." 
He  died  after  a  brief  but  brilliant  reign  of  less  than  twelve 
months,  and  was  buried  in  the  grotto  under  Calvary,  near  the 
tomb  of  Christ,  where  his  grave  is  still  pointed  out  to  the  visitor. 
His  sword,  a  weighty  two-edged  instrument,  and  his  spurs,  are 
«till  kept  as  mementos  of  his  deeds,  in  the  Latin  chapel  of  the 
Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulcher. 

The  Latin  kingdom  continued  for  eighty-eight  years  under 
varied  circumstances,  but  was  finally  overthrown  by  the  Saracens 
,and  Turks.  The  defeat  of  the  Knights  by  Saladin  on  Mount 
Hattin,  July  4th,  1187,  was  a  death-blow  to  the  Christian  gov- 
ernment of  Palestine. 

The  capture  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  rise  of  the  Latin  kingdom 
in  the  East,  together  with  the  fanatical  and  martial  spirit  that 
inspired  the  Crusades,  gave  birth  to  two  orders  of  religious 
knighthood,  through  whose  valor  the  Christian  cause  was  long 
sustained.  They  were  known  as  the  Knights  of  St.  John  or 
Hospitalers,  and  Knights  of  the  Temple.     The  origin  of  both 


ORDER   OF   KNIGHTS   TEMPLAR.  531 

these  orders  was  pious,  practical  benevolence,  for  the  relief  of  the 
sick  and  poor,  and  the  protection  of  pilgrims.  The  Moslems 
still  ruled  the  country,  and  the  numerous  pilgrims  visiting  Jeru- 
salem were  subjected  to  many  outrages ;  some  became  sick  and 
too  faint  to  travel ;  others  were  robbed  and  left  half  dead  by  the 
way.  The  Knights  of  St,  John  furnished  entertainment  to  all 
such,  giving  alms  to  the  needy.  Their  hospital  and  headquarters 
in  Jerusalem,  known  as  the  Muristan,  was  close  by  the  Holy 
Sepulcher.  It  was  a  large,  richly  endowed  institution,  portions 
of  which  are  still  standing,  conspicuous  among  which  is  a  marble 
Gothic  gateway  with  numerous  sculptured  emblems  of  their 
order.  When  the  Christians  were  driven  from  Palestine,  the 
Hospitalers  settled  on  the  island  of  Cyprus.  From  Cyprus  they 
were  driven  by  the  Turks  to  Rhodes,  and  from  thence  to  Malta, 
which  was  given  them  by  Charles  V.  in  1630.  They  have 
retained  their  position  on  this  island  ever  since,  and  are  known 
as  the  Knights  of  Malta.  Godfrey  left  his  royal  estates  in  PaU 
estitie  and  Europe  to  this  order,  of  which  he  was  an  active 
member. 

The  order  of  Knights  Templar  differed  from  that  of  St.  John 
in  having  a  martial  profession  united  with  the  charitable.  They 
were  the  chevaliers  of  Zion  ;  and  though  their  object  at  first  was 
the  protection  of  pilgrims,  they  afterwards  became  the  defenders 
of  Christianity  in  the  East,  and  the  sworn  enemies  of  Islam. 
The  royal  palace  of  the  Kings  of  Jerusalem  was  within  the  temple 
enclosure.  Baldwin  I.  gave  to  these  Knights,  to  whom  he  was 
greatly  indebted  for  services  rendered,  a  part  of  this  palace,  mak- 
ing them  custodians  of  the  Temple  Mount,  from  which  circum- 
stance they  derived  their  name.  In  dress  they  differed  from  the 
Hospitalers  by  wearing  a  long  white  mantle  with  a  red  cross  on 
the  left  breast,  and  were  sometimes  known  as  Knights  of  the  Red 
Cross. 


532  BIBLE    LANDS. 

There  were  half  a  dozen  subsequent  Crusades,  extending  over 
a  period  of  nearly  two  centuries,  all  ostensibly  for  the  same 
object,  or  to  strengthen  the  positions  held  by  the  Christians  in 
the  East.  The  fall  of  Edessa  and  the  slaughter  of  the  Christians 
in  that  city  in  1144  horrified  their  brethren  in  the  West,  and  a 
second  Crusade  was  preached  by  the  famous  St.  Bernard,  with  the 
same  effect  as  that  of  Peter  the  Hermit.  Two  enormous  armies, 
estimated  at  1,200,000  fighting  men,  70,000  of  whom  were 
mailed  cavalry  or  knights,  under  the  command  of  Louis  VII., 
King  of  France,  and  Conrad  III.,  Emperor  of  Germany,  marched 
for  the  Holy  Land.  The  expedition,  however,  proved  a  total  fail- 
ure. Both  armies  were  almost  destroyed  by  the  Turks  in  Asia 
Minor. 

The  capture  of  Jerusalem  in  1187  by  Saladin,  a  young  Kurd- 
ish chief  who  had  made  himself  Sultan  of  Egypt,  was  very 
humiliating  to  the  chivalry  of  Europe,  and  filled  all  Christendom 
with  horror  and  grief,  and  a  tliird  Crusade  was  undertaken  by  the 
Emperor  of  Germany,  Frederick  I.,  generally  known  as  Barba- 
rossa  or  Red-beard,  and  Richard  Coeur-de-Lion,  King  of  Eng- 
land. This  expedition  also  resulted  in  disastrous  failure.  Bar- 
barossa  lost  his  life  by  fever,  and  was  buried  at  Tyre.  Riciiard, 
the  Lion-Hearted — one  of  the  bravest  of  the  brave,  after  many 
personal  adventures  and  desperate  conflicts  with  the  Saracens,  in 
which  he  performed  prodigies  of  valor — when  in  sight  of  Jeru- 
salem, with  the  enemy  terror-stricken  by  iiis  presence,  and  the 
city  ready  to  throw  open  its  gates  to  receive  him,  for  some  unac- 
countable reason  suddenly  stopped  his  advance,  returned  to  Jaifa, 
and  sailed  for  Europe.  The  other  Crusades  resulted  in  like  fail- 
ures, the  Mohammedans,  fighting  on  their  own  territory,  being 
too  powerful  for  the  Knights  of  the  Cross. 

The  most  painful  and  remarkable  incident  in  this  remarkable 


children's  crusade.  533 

<3onflict  was  what  is  known  as  the  Children's  Crusade.  A  French 
shepherd-boy,  but  sixteen  years  old,  in  1212,  imagined  that  the 
Saviour  had  appeared  to  him,  and  promised  if  the  children  would 
engage  in  another  Crusade  they  would  achieve  a  victory  which 
the  soldiers  and  nobles  could  not  win.  He  went  to  the  Church 
of  St.  Denis  in  Paris  and  preached  the  Crusade.  His  fame  rap- 
idly spread  throughout  France,  Germany  and  Spain.  The  same 
old  cry  was  heard  again,  "It  is  the  will  of  God."  Despite  the 
opposition  of  kings  and  parents,  large  armies  of  children  enlisted. 
One  from  Germany  proceeded  as  far  as  Genoa,  but  encountered 
so  much  hardship — many  dying  from  hunger  and  disease — it  was 
abandoned.  Another,  raised  in  France,  advanced  to  Marseilles. 
Here  they  met  with  a  strange,  unlooked-for  doom.  Some  slave 
traders,  whose  profession  it  was  to  purchase  or  steal  children  in 
order  to  sell  them  to  the  Saracens,  offered  to  furnish  transports 
to  convey  them  to  Palestine  without  charge.  A  fleet  of  seven 
vessels,  with  twenty  thousand  of  these  deluded  children  on  board, 
the  flower  of  French  youth,  set  sail  from  Marseilles  for  the  East. 
For  eighteen  years  nothing  was  heard  of  them.  At  the  end  of 
that  time  an  old  pilgrim  arrived  from  Jerusalem  with  the  appall- 
ing news  that  two  out  of  the  seven  transports  had  been  wrecked 
off  Sicily,  and  all  on  board  had  perished.  The  other  five  vessels 
had  reached  Alexandria,  and  the  children  were  sold  by  their 
betrayers  in  the  slave  markets  of  Cairo  and  other  cities  of  the 
Orient.  It  is  estimated  that  fifty  thousand  of  the  youth  of  Eu- 
rope were  lost  in  this  most  remarkable  of  all  the  Crusades. 

"The  cessation  of  the  Crusades  was  not  produced  by  any 
abatement  of  the  love  of  arms,  or  of  the  thirst  of  glory,  in  the 
chivalry  of  Europe.  But  the  union  with  these  martial  qualities 
of  that  fanatical  enthusiasm  which  inspired  the  Christian  warriors 
of  the  eleventh  century  had  been  slowly  and  almost  thoroughly 


534  BIBLE   LANDS. 

dissolved."  Every  efiFort  to  revive  this  enthusiasm  proved  abor- 
tive. The  spirit  which  animated  the  myriads  that  joined  in  these 
wars  had  died  out,  and  for  the  last  seven  centuries  the  Holy  Land 
has  remained  in  possession  of  the  Turk. 


ASSYRIAN  SEAL. 


APPEXDIX. 


CHAPTER  I. 

EGYPT    AND    THE    EGYPTIANS. 

Land  of  the  Pharaohs — Tower  of  Sj-ene — Oldest  Civilized  Portion  of  the  Globe — 
Battle-field  of  the  World — Grand  Monuments — Tombs  of  the  Kings — Wonder- 
ful. Discoveries  at  Dayr  el  Bahree — Royal  Mummies — Pyramids  at  Sakara — 
Cleopatra's  Needle — Prophecj'  Fulfilled — Mohammed  Ali — Slaugliter  of  the 
Mamelukes  —  Joseph's  "Well  —  Ishmaelites  —  Arab  Bey  —  Late  Conflict  — 
Future  of  Egypt. 

IVTEXT  to  Palestine,  no  country  possesses  greater  interest  than 
JLl  the  land  of  the  old  Pharaohs,  and  every  thing  that  relates 
to  the  history  of  this  ancient  nation  is  eagerly  sought  after. 

Egypt  proper  is  confined  to  the  valley  of  the  Nile,  "  the 
river  of  Egypt,"  extending  from  the  Delta  up  to  the  First 
■Cataract,  a  distance  of  about  eight  hundred  miles  from  north 
to  south.  The  "  Tower  of  Syene,"  modern  Assouan,  has  always 
been  the  natural  southern  boundary  of  "  the  land  of  Ham." 
True,  some  of  the  old  Pharaohs  extended  their  conquests 
higher  up  the  river,  but  they  were  never  able  to  hold  the  ter- 
ritory they  conquered.  This  part  of  Africa  was  first  settled 
from  the  north,  as  the  Scriptures  state  and  the  oldest  monu- 
ments clearly  prove,  by  Mizraim  the  son  of  Ham ; '  and  it  is  a 
lingular  fact  that  Mizraim,  the  Hebrew  word  for  Egypt,  is  the 
Arabic  name  of  the  countr\'  at  the  present  time. 

'  Grenesis  x,  6. 

635 


536  APPENDIX. 

The  history  of  Egypt  almost  covers  the  history  of  our  race. 
It  is  probably  the  oldest  civilized  portion  of  the  globe,  and 
the  most  fertile,  with  the  most  uniform  climate ;  and  her 
monuments  are  among  the  grandest  ever  erected  by  man.  All 
the  great  powers  of  antiquity  have  coveted  this  rich  prize,  and 
millions  of  lives  have  been  sacrificed  for  its  possession ;  so  that 
the  valley  of  the  Nile  has  been  the  battle-field  of  the  world, 
and  to-day  is  nothing  more  than  one  vast  cemetery  of  buried 
cities  and  buried  races. 

The  monumental  remains  of  this  ancient  people  have  long 
been  the  wonder  of  the  world.  ^Nothing  could  surpass  in 
grandeur  and  magnitude  her  temples,  pyramids,  and  rock-hewn 
tombs,  a  full  account  of  which  will  be  found  in  the  first  part 
of  this  book. 

These  explorations  are  still  going  on,  and  within  the  last 
year  several  important  discoveries  have  been  made ;  one,  the- 
mummy-pits  near  the  old  temple  of  Dayr  el  Bahree,  just  back 
of  Thebes,  the  renowned  capital  of  Upper  Egypt. 

Tlie  "  Tombs  of  the  Kings,"  recovered  by  Belzoni,  more 
than  half  a  century  ago,  were  regarded  as  a  great  discovery. 
They  are  situated  among  the  cliffs  at  the  head  of  a  desolate 
gorge,  about  three  miles  west  of  Thebes — vast  temj)les  for 
the  dead,  composed  of  numerous  richly-colored  sculptured  halls,, 
corridors  and  chambers  excavated  out  of  the  solid  rock  and 
penetrating  the  mountain  in  some  instances  from  five  to  eight 
hundred  feet.  No  human  remains  were  found  in  these  tombs, 
and  yet,  from  the  empty,  broken  sarcophagi,  and  other  evi- 
dences of  vandalism,  it  was  clear  they  had  once  been  occu- 
pied but  plundered  by  unknown  parties  centuries  before,  and 
it  was  a  great  mystery  what  had  become  of  the  remains  of 


MUM^riES  OF  THE  OLD  PHARAOHS.  537 

the  old  kings  of  Egypt.  Happily,  through  the  faithful  exer- 
tions of  Herr  Brugsch  and  Professor  Maspero,  this  problem 
is  now  solved. 

In  a  gallery  two  hundred  feet  long  and  thirty  deep,  cut  in 
the  natural  rock  at  the  base  of  the  bleak  Libyan  Mountains 
that  form  the  western  boundary  of  ancient  Thebes,  thirty-six 
nnimmies  of  the  old  Pharaohs  and  their  families  have  been 
recently  found.  They  had  been  removed  ages  before  from 
their  royal  tombs,  perhaps  during  the  Persian  or  some  other 
foreign  invasion,  and  for  safe  keeping  placed  in  this  more 
secure,  though  humbler  sepulcher.  And  to-day,  in  the  museum 
at  Boolak,  may  be  seen  lying  side  by  side  the  kings  and  queens, 
princes  and  priests  of  royal  blood,  who  lived  between  three 
and  four  thousand  years  ago.     How  marvelous ! 

Their  bodies  were  carefully  embalmed,  and  are  wonderfully 
preserved.  Even  the  garlands  of  the  sacred  lotus,  and  other 
floral  mementos,  left  with  the  dead  by  sorrowing  friends,  are 
still  there,  looking  as  fresh  as  if  cut  but  a  few  months  ago. 
The  mummy  cases  are  richly  decorated,  some  had  been  over- 
laid with  gold,  and  on  each  the  name  and  titles  of  its  inmate 
are  legibly  written  ;  on  one  this  inscription  is  set  in  precious 
stones. 

There  is  Sethi  I.,  one  of  Egypt's  greatest  kings,  whom 
Joseph,  it  is  supposed,  served  as  governor ;  next  to  him  lies 
Thothmes  III.,  who  first  erected,  in  front  of  the  grand  temple 
at  Heliopolis,  the  obelisk  now  in  Central  Park ;  then  comes 
Ranieses  II,,  the  cruel  oppressor  of  the  Israelites,  and  near 
by  the  beautifully  embalmed  body  of  his  daughter,  supposed 
to  be  the  princess  who  rescued  Moses  from  the  Nile;  with 
many   other   royal    personages   of   different    dynasties,   cover- 


638  APPENDIX. 

ing  a  period  of  at  least  seven  centuries.  And  what  is  even 
more  surprising,  with  each  coffin  was  found  a  bronze  canopic 
um,  or  alabaster  vase,  containing  the  embalmed  heart  of  its 
occupant ;  so  we  have  here  before  us  the  Pharaoh  whose  heart 
was  hardened  when  he  refused  to  let  the  children  of  Israel  go, 
and  the  Pharaoh's  daughter  whose  heart  was  touched  with 
pity  when  she  heard  the  young  child  cry  in  its  ark  of  bul- 
rushes.    Was  ever  fiction  more  strange ! 

Several  of  the  mummies  are  females,  one  an  infant,  only 
sixteen  inches  long,  and  yet  has  all  the  titles  of  royalty.     It 


EMBALllED  BL'LL,   OR  APIS. 

was  found  in  the  same  coffin  with  its  mother,  and  they  appear 
to  have  been  buried  at  the  same  time. 

This  process  of  embalming  was  practiced  by  the  EgyiDtians 
for  more  than  two  thousand  years ;  and  not  only  all  natives,  but 
strangers,  captives  and  slaves,  were  subjected  to  the  rite ;  so  that 
there  must  be  at  the  present  time  millions,  if  not  hundreds  of 
millions,  of  these  mummies  hidden  among  the  mountain  ranges 
or  concealed  by  the  ever  shifting  sands  of  Egypt.  They  also 
embalmed  their  sacred  birds,  cats  and  bulls,  the  latter  being 


EGYPTIAN  MODE  OF  BURIAL.  539 

regarded  as  the  incarnation  of  Osiris.  It  was  the  custom  to 
burv  with  the  dead  such  articles  as  were  found  about  their 
persons,  or  belonged  to  their  profession.  Thus  we  find  the 
soldier  with  his  bow  and  arrows,  the  painter  with  his  palette, 
tiie  scribe  with  his  pen  and  papyrus,  the  carpenter  with  his 
adze,  the  mason  with  his  mallet  and  chisel,  the  musician  with  his 
cymbals,  and  the  child  with  its  doll  and  other  playthings. 
On  one  young  man  was  found  a  sealed  letter  directed  to  a 
friend,  the  youth  dying  before  tlie  letter  was  delivered. 

With  the  mummies  found  at  Dayr  el  Bahree  there  were 
:five  thousand  seven  hundred  different  articles,  among  them  a 
royal  funeral  canopy,  three  thousand  years  old,  very  richly 
•embroidered  on  leather ;  also  four  large  rolls  of  papyri,  one 
■of  them  one  hundred  and  f ort}^  feet  long  and  sixteen  inches  wide. 
AVhen  these  rolls  are  translated  they  will  no  doubt  give  a  f uU 
history  of  the  royal  dead,  with  many  other  important  facts. 

Among  the  effects  belonging  to  the  women  were  numerous 
statuettes,  libation  jars,  bottles  of  ointment  and  cosmetics, 
alabaster  cups  of  beautiful  design,  goblets  of  variegated  glass, 
and  fifteen  full-dress  wigs,  of  curled  and  frizzed  hair,  of  the 
latest  Paris  style,  all  ready  to  put  on  when  the  soul  returned  to 
reoccupy  its  body. 

But  the  most  exciting  event  connected  with  the  finding  of 
these  mummies  was  the  unwrapping  of  the  embalmed  body  of 
Rameses  the  Great,  on  June  1st,  1886,  by  professor  Maspero, 
director-general  of  the  excavations  recently  made  in  Egypt,  and 
Brugsch-Bey,  keeper  of  the  museum  of  Boolak. 

Rameses  II.,  the  Sesostris  of  history,  was  the  third  Pharaoh 
-of  the  nineteenth  dynasty,  and  began  to  reign  about  1430  B.  C. 
He  was  the  foster-father  of  Moses;  the  Pliaraoh  who  so  bitterly 


>40  BIBLE   LANDS. 

oppressed  the  Hebrews,  and  the  greatest  builder  of  his  age.  The 
two  magnificent  subterranean  temples  at  Aboo-Simbel  in  Nubia, 
the  Ramesium  of  Thebes,  also  the  famous  temples  of  Karnak 
and  Luxor,  and  the  small  temple  at  Abydos,  are  ascribed  to  him. 

From  the  official  report  of  Prof.  Maspero  we  gather  the  fol- 
lowing interesting  facts  concerning  one  of  Egypt's  greatest  kings. 

The  mummy  of  Rameses  II.,*  clearly  identified  by  the  official 
entries  bearing  date  the  6th  year  of  the  reign  of  the  High  Priest 
Her-hor  Se-Amen,  written  in  black  ink  upon  the  lid  of  the 
wooden  mummy  case,  and  the  further  entry  of  the  16th  year  of 
the  High  Priest  Pinotem  I.,  written  upon  the  outer  winding  sheet 
of  the  nmmmy  over  the  region  of  the  breast.  After  the  first 
wrapping  was  removed,  there  were  successively  discovered  a  band 
of  stuif  eight  inches  in  width,  rolled  round  the  body ;  then  a. 
second  winding  sheet  sewn  up  and  kept  in  place  by  narrow  bands- 
placed  at  some  distance  apart;  then  two  thicknesses  of  small 
bandages ;  and  then  a  piece  of  fine  linen  reaching  from  the  head 
to  the  feet.  A  figure  representing  the  Goddess  Nut,  one  yard  in 
length,  is  drawn  upon  this  piece  of  linen,  in  red  and  white,  as 
prescribed  by  the  ritual.  Under  this  amulet  there  was  found 
another  bandage;  then  a  layer  of  pieces  of  linen  folded  in  squares 
and  spotted  with  the  bituminous  matter  used  by  the  embalmers. 
This  last  covering  removed,  Rameses  II.  appeared.  The  head 
is  long  and  small  in  proportion  to  the  body.  The  top  of  the 
skull  is  quite  bare,  but  at  the  poll  the  hair  is  thick,  forming 
smooth,  straight  locks  about  two  inches  in  length.  AVhite  at  the 
time  of  death,  they  have  been  dyed  a  light  yellow  by  the  spices 
used  in  embalmment.  The  forehead  is  low  and  narrow  ;  the  brow- 
ridge  prominent;  the  eyebrows  are  thick  and  white;  the  eyes  are 

*  For  the  portrait  of  Rameses  II.,  on  opposite  page,  we  are  indebted  to  Messrs.. 
Cupples,  Upham  &  Co.,  of  Boston,  Mass. 


Copyright,  Cupplee,  Upham  d  Co.,  BotUjti. 
MUMMY  OF  RAMESES  II..  THE   OPPRESSOR  OF  THE  HEBREWS,  1430  B.C. 


MUMMY   OF   EAMESES   II.  545 

small  and  close  together ;  the  nose  is  long  and  thin ;  the  temples 
are  sunken ;  the  cheekbones  very  prominent ;  the  ears  round,  stand- 
ing far  out  from  the  head,  and  pierced  like  those  of  a  woman  for 
the  wearing  of  earrings.  The  jawbone  is  massive  and  strong;, 
the  chin  very  prominent ;  the  mouth  small  but  thick  lipped  ;  the 
teeth  are  white  and  well  preserved.  The  mustache  and  beard  are 
thin.  They  seem  to  have  been  kept  shaven  during  life,  but  were 
probably  allowed  to  grow  during  the  king's  last  illness,  or  they  may 
have  grown  after  death.  The  hairs  are  white  like  those  of  the 
liead  and  eyebrows,  but  are  harsh  and  bristly.  The  skin  is  of 
earthy  brown  splotched  with  black.  Finally,  it  may  be  said  the 
face  of  the  mummy  gives  a  fair  idea  of  the  face  of  the  living^ 
king.  The  expression  is  unintellectual,  but  there  is  plainly  to 
be  seen  an  air  of  sovereign  majesty  about  it.  The  rest  of  the  body 
is  well  preserved,  but  in  consequence  of  the  reduction  of  the  tis- 
sues, its  external  aspect  is  less  life-like.  The  chest  is  broad  ;  the 
shoulders  are  square ;  the  arms  are  crossed  upon  the  breast ;  the 
hands  are  small  and  dyed  with  henna ;  and  the  wound  in  the  left 
side  through  which  the  embalmers  extracted  the  viscera  is  large  and 
open.  The  corpse  is  that  of  an  old  man,  but  of  a  vigorous  and 
robust  old  man.  We  know  that  Rameses  II.  reigned  for  67  years,., 
and  that  he  must  have  been  nearly  100  years  old  when  he  died. 

Equally  interesting  discoveries  have  been  made  recently  ia 
the  Pyramids  at  Sakara,  the  oldest  in  Egypt,  by  Mariette  Bey 
and  Professor  Maspero.  These  eminent  archaeologists  suc- 
ceeded in  finding  the  long-concealed  entrance  to  these  tombs 
of  royalty ;  found  within  them  the  mortuary  chapels  of  the  old 
Pharaohs  covered  with  sacred  inscriptions,  giving  all  details 
of  their  religious  belief ;  found  the  regal  sarcophagi  of  black 
basalt,  and  the  mummied  remains  of  the  old  Memphite  kings 


544 


APPENDIX. 


belonging  to  the  fifth  and  sixth  dynasties,  proving  beyond  con- 
troversy that  these  monuments  were  designed  as  tombs  for 
their  kings,  and  exploding  forever  the  wild  speculations  lately 
indulged  in  touching  the  Pyramids. 


.■J^-^.^-ui-iyi:kWi)i 


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J    .;     ,}■ 

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i^A 

m^i 

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f" 

i^f^ 

■mT^f-^ 

^%^ 

INTERIOR  OF  TOMB,  SAEABA. 


T/jxt  to  these  royal  mausoleums  in  point  of  antiquity  are 
the  obelisks,  of  which  so  little  is  known.  They  all  appear  to 
have  stood  east  of  the  Nile,  toward  sunrise,  and  probably  sym 


CLKOPATKA'S  ^£EDLE  AT  ALEXANDKIA. 


CLEOPATRA  S  NEEDLES.  547 

bolized  the  dawa  of  life,  as  the  pyramids  did  the  shades  of 
death.  One  of  the  two  known  as  Cleopatra's  Needles,  re- 
cently brought  to  America  and  now  standing  in  Central  Park, 
N.  Y.,  is  a  single  shaft  of  rose-colored  Syenite  granite,  sixty- 
eight  feet  eleven  inches  long,  and  about  eight  feet  square  at  its 
base,  tapering  to  five  feet  at  the  top ;  weighing  one  hundred 
and  eighty-six  tons,  and  measuring  in  height,  with  its  pedestal, 
ninety-six  feet.  These  monuments  were  first  called  obelisks  by 
the  Greeks,  from  " oheliskoSj^  a  spit,  awl,  or  large  needle,  a 
name  probably  suggested  by  their  peculiar  shape ;  and  the  two 
lately  taken  from  Alexandria  have  long  been  known  as  "  Cleo- 
patra's Needles,"  though  that  celebrity  had  nothing  to  do  with 
their  erection,  and  may  never  have  seen  them.  The  one  in 
Central  Park  is  among  the  oldest  extant.  It  originally  stood 
in  front  of  the  Temple  of  the  Sun  at  Heliopolis,  but  was  re- 
moved to  Alexandria  by  order  of  Augustus  Caesar,  in  the  sev- 
enth year  of  that  emperor's  reign,  B.  C.  23,  or  eight  years  after 
Cleopatra's  death,  and  placed  with  its  companion,  now  in  Lon- 
don, in  front  of  a  temple  dedicated  to  Augustus. 

The  four  sides  are  covered  with  hieroglyphic  inscriptions,  cut 
sharply  in  the  hard  granite  in  three  lines  from  top  to  bottom. 
The  middle  column  on  each  face  records  the  heroic  deeds  of 
Thothmes  III.,  who  first  set  up  the  obelisk  at  Heliopolis.  The 
side  lines,  which  are  two  hundred  and  seventy  years  later,  but 
not  so  bold,  recite  the  exploits  and  virtues  of  Rameses  II.,  of 
the  nineteenth  dynasty,  the  most  famous  of  Egyptian  kings, 
who  reigned  sixty-seven  years,  about  fourteen  centuries  before 
Christ. 

Egypt  was  the  land  of  obelisks.  Anciently,  hundreds  of 
them  stood  in  front  of  her  grand  temples,  but  she  has  been 
85 


A 


548  APPENDIX. 

cruelly  despoiled  of  these  graceful  monuments.  They  have 
been  carried  away  to  Rome,  Constantinople,  Paris,  London^ 
and  now  New  York,  until  not  more  than  half  a  dozen  are  left 
standing  in  all  Egypt.  The  largest  of  the  twenty-five  in 
Europe  is  before  the  basilica  of  St.  John  Lateran,  Rome.  The 
shaft  alone  is  one  hundred  and  six  feet  high  and  weighs  four 
hundred  and  forty-five  tons.  It  belongs  to  the  dynasty  of 
Thothmes  III.,  the  same  as  the  one  in  Central  Park,  and  was 
transported  from  Thebes  to  Rome  by  Constantius,  A.D.  357. 
The  next  largest  is  the  one  at  Karnak,  ascribed  to  Hatasoo,. 
sister  of  Thothmes  III.,  which  is  estimated  to  weigh  four  hun- 
dred tons. 

According  to  Herodotus,  the  entire  temple  of  Sais  was  a 
monolith,  weighing  five  thousand  tons,  and  two  thousand  menr 
were  three  years  transporting  it  from  Syene.  How  such  enor- 
mous blocks  of  granite  were  taken  from  the  quarry  at  the  first 
cataract  of  the  Nile,  eight  hundred  miles  from  the  sea,  and 
brought  down  to  the  delta,  and  to  different  parts  of  Europe, 
at  that  early  period,  before  modern  appliances  were  known,  is 
marvelous.  There  must  have  been  operative  masons  in  that 
day,  and  this,  probably,  is  the  great  secret  our  Masonic  friends 
have  so  long  and  so  faithfully  kept. 

No  one  can  visit  these  remains  of  former  wealth  and  power, 
and  contrast  the  present  condition  of  Egypt  with  what  it  was 
under  the  Pharaohs,  without  being  impressed  with  the  truth 
of  revelation  as  seen  in  the  literal  fulfillment  of  the  prophecies 
that  relate  to  this  land.  These  predictions  were  uttered  when 
Egypt  was  in  all  her  glory,  and  when  nothing  but  Omniscience 
could  have  foretold  her  degradation. 

Thus  saith  the  Lord  God  :  "  Behold,  I  will  give  the  land  of 


WONDERFUL  FULFILLMENT  OF  PEOPHECY.  549 

Egypt  unto  Xebuehadnezzar  king  of  Babylon;  and  he  shall 
take  her  multitude,  and  take  her  spoil;  and  it  shall  be  the 
wages  for  his  arm^^"  *  "  It  shall  be  the  basest  of  the  kingdoms ; 
neither  shall  it  exalt  itseK  any  more  above  the  nations."' 
"  And  the  Egyptians  will  I  give  over  into  the  hands  of  cruel 
lords ;  and  a  fierce  king  shall  rule  over  them.-'  ^  "  I  will 
scatter  the  Egyptians  among  the  nations."  "  And  there  shall 
be  no  more  a  prince  of  the  land  of  Egypt."  *  There  are  many 
other  prophecies  of  the  same  import,  but  these  are  sufficient 
to  show  their  striking  fulfillment. 

We  have  here  given  the  very  name  of  the  king  who  was 
chosen  to  break  the  power  of  this  mighty  nation,  with  the 
whole  list  of  reverses  experienced  in  her  subsequent  history. 
In  fact,  the  history  of  this  country  is  little  more  than  prophecy 
fulfilled.  Nebuchadnezzar,  Babylon's  greatest  king,  was  the 
first  to  invade  and  conquer  Egypt,  B.  C.  572.  It  remained  a 
dependency  of  Babylonia  until  the  Persian  conquest  by  Cam- 
byses,  B.C.  525,  after  which  it  was  governed  by  Persian  satraps 
down  to  its  conquest  by  Alexander  the  Great,  B.  C.  332. 
The  Greeks  held  possession  until  it  was  taken  from  them  by 
the  Romans,  B.C.  30,  when  it  became  a  Roman  province,  and 
remained  so  until  conquered  by  the  Arabs  under  Amer,  A.  D. 
638,  after  which  it  was  governed  by  the  Caliphs,  or  Saracens, 
until  conquered  by  the  Turks  under  Sultan  Selim,  in  1517, 
when  it  became  a  part  of  the  Ottoman  Empire.  So  that  dur- 
ing the  last  twenty-four  centuries  there  has  not  been  a  native 
prince  for  any  length  of  time  on  the  throne  of  Egypt. 

The  founder  of  the  present  dynasty,  Mohammed  Ali,  by 
birth  a  European,  was  made  Viceroy  of  Egypt  by  the  Porte 

•  Ezek.  xxLx,  1^       *  Ezek.  xxix,  15.       » Isa.  xix,  4.       *  Ezek.  xxx,  13-26. 


550  APPENDIX. 

in  1806.  He  was  a  man  of  great  courage,  intelligence,  and 
liberality,  and  did  for  Egypt  more  than  any  other  prince  in 
centuries.  He  not  only  restored  order  and  created  an  army, 
but  established  schools,  encouraged  industry,  protected  Chris- 
tians, aided  science,  and  for  over  forty  years  ruled  the  land 
with  wisdom,  firmness,  and  justice ;  and,  but  for  the  interven- 
tion of  Europe,  would  have  added  all  Syria  to  his  dominion. 
Ismail  Pasha,  who  succeeded  to  the  Yice-Royalty  in  1863,  was 
the  adopted  grandson  of  Mohammed  Ali,  and,  in  1868,  his  title 
of  Viceroy  was  changed  to  that  of  Khidewe,  or  Khedive,  a  Per- 
sian title  of  higher  rank.  Owing,  however,  to  his  extravagance 
and  misrule,  Ismail  was  deposed  in  1879,  and  his  eldest  son, 
Tewfik,  the  great-grandson  of  Mohammed  Ali,  appointed  by 
the  European  powers  to  reign  in  his  father's  stead.  The  pres- 
ent Khedive  is  a  young  man  of  sound  judgment,  good  edu- 
cation, liberal  in  his  views,  with  but  one  wife,  and  if  let  alone 
will  make  a  good  ruler. 
A  Cairo,  the  capital  and  residence  of  the  Khedive,  is  the 
largest  city  in  Africa,  containing  a  population  of  half  a  million, 
with  beautiful  avenues,  parks,  palaces,  hotels,  opera-house, 
mosques,  bazaars,  not  to  mention  the  dogs,  donkeys,  camels, 
/  and  motley  crowds  of  men,  women  and  children,  that  serve 
to  make  up  all  Oriental  cities.  On  a  rocky  ridge  to  the  east, 
overlooking  the  city,  is  the  Citadel,  built  by  Sultan  Saladin  in 
1166,  of  stone  taken  from  the  pyramids  of  Ghizeh.  A  fine 
view  is  had  from  this  eminence  of  Cairo  and  its  surroundings. 
'  Just  in  front  of  you  is  the  grand  Mosque  of  Sultan  Hassan ; 
then  comes  the  city  with  its  numerous  minarets  and  sun-Ht 
domes,  with  the  river  and  its  fleet  of  little  boats  beyond,  and 
away  off  on  the  horizon  the  great  African  deseri  in  all  its  soli- 


CITADEL,  AND  WELL  OF  JOSEPH.  553 

tude,  flanked  by  the  pyramids  on  the  one  hand  and  the  ever- 
green delta  on  the  other.  A  view  never  to  be  forgotten.  It 
■was  in  the  courts  of  this  Citadel  the  Mamelukes  were  betrayed 
and  cruelly  slaughtered  by  Mohammed  Ali  in  1811.  Originally 
the  men  composing  this  celebrated  cavalry  were  Circassian 
slaves,  belonging  to  the  Sultan,  but  in  time  they  almost  gained 
control  of  the  army  and  country,  and  Mohammed  Ali,  suspecting 
them  of  certain  plots  and  intrigues,  resolved  on  their  extermi- 
nation, which  he  finally  accomplished,  by  alluring  them  into  the 
Fortress,  and  then  murdering  them  in  cold  blood.  The  spot 
where  Emin  Bey,  the  only  one  who  escaped,  made  his  fearful 
leap,  is  still  pointed  out.  The  old  palace  of  Saladin  formerly 
«tood  within  the  Citadel,  but  was  removed  to  make  room  for 
the  splendid  mosque  and  tomb  of  Mohammed  Ali,  which  now 
covers  the  same  site.  But  the  greatest  curiosity  here  is  the 
■"Well  of  Joseph,"  which  supplies  the  Citadel  with  water. 
It  is  supposed  to  be  the  work  of  the  ancient  Egyptians,  if 
not  of  Joseph  the  Hebrew,  whose  name  it  bears,  and  was 
discovered  by  Saladin,  filled  with  sand,  when  clearing  away 
the  site  for  his  fortress.  It  is  two  hundred  and  ninety  feet 
deep  and  fifteen  feet  in  diameter,  excavated  in  the  solid  rock, 
with  a  spiral  staircase  or  inclined  plane,  like  the  thread  of  a 
ficrew,  winding  around  the  well  from  top  to  bottom,  wide 
enough  to  drive  two  mules  abreast  down,  all  cut  out  of  the 
natural  rock,  making  the  entire  opening  at  least  twenty-five 
feet  in  diameter.  The  water  is  raised  by  means  of  earthen  jars 
fastened  to  an  endless  rope  passing  over  a  wheel,  and  kept  con- 
tinually revolving  by  mules  or  oxen,  stationed  above  and  below. 
The  jars  that  come  up  full  discharge  at  the  top,  and  descend 
empty.     It  certainly  is  a  grand  piece  of  engineering,  and  how 


554  APPENDIX. 

euch  an  excavation  was  made  to  such  a  depth,  without  fractur- 
ing the  rock,  is  even  a  greater  wonder  than  the  well  itself. 

The  present  population  of  Egypt  numbers  about  5,000,000, 
principally  Arabs,  or  the  descendants  of  Ishmael,  Abraham's 
eldest  son,  by  Hagar,  his  Egyptian  wife.'  Ishmael  also  mar- 
ried an  Egyptian,"  and  was  the  father  of  twelve  sons,  or  twelve 
noted  princes,  who  became  the  progenitors  of  twelve  Arab 
tribes.'  These  tribes  are  the  wandering  Ishmaelites,  or  Arabs 
of  the  desert,  and,  as  foretold,  have  become  "  a  great  nation,"  * 
numbering  probably  100,000,000.  They  are  a  fearless,  inde- 
pendent race,  claiming  never  to  have  been  conquered,  paying 
tribute  to  no  king,  leading  a  nomadic  life,  roving  at  pleasure 
over  the  country,  with  their  vast  flocks  and  herds,  having  no 
local  habitation,  but  dwelling  in  tents  of  black  goat's  hair,  and 
living  by  plunder.     A  race  of  hereditary  robbers. 

Their  history  is  a  standing  miracle.  They  are  still  wild 
men,  their  "  hand  against  every  man,  and  every  man's  hand 
against  them." '  Dwelling  for  centuries  in  the  presence  of 
their  brethren,  the  Jews,  Edomites,  Moabites,  and  Ammonites, 
all  highly  civilized  nations,  the  Ishmaelites  are,  nevertheless,  as 
wild  and  uncivilized  to-day  as  they  were  3,000  years  ago.  They 
build  no  cities,  make  no  improvements,  have  no  schools,  but 
lead  a  predatory,  lazy  life,  looking  upon  all  labor  as  degrading. 
There  are  two  classes  of  Arabs — the  Bedouin  and  Fellaheen. 
The  Bedouins  are  the  wild  sons  of  the  desert,  warriors  by  pro- 
fession, ever  on  the  war-path,  and,  when  mounted  on  their  fleet 
Arab  steeds,  in  their  gay  trappings,  armed  with  long  lances,  the 
blades,  highly  polished,  gleaming  in  the  sun-light,  look  very 

*  Genesis  xvi,  3.  *  Genesis  xxi,  21.  ^Genesis  xxv,  16. 

*  Genesis  xvii,  20.        ^Genesis  xvi,  12. 


EGYPTIAN    SOLDIERS. 


555 


formidable.  The  Fellaheen  are  the  tillers  of  the  soil,  generally 
very  ignorant  and  snperstitious,  have  no  taste  for  war,  and  will 
never  make  soldiers.  The  Egyptians  are  principally  of  the 
latter  class,  and  though  they  make  good 
field  hands,  know  very  little  of  politics, 
and  are  not  the  material  to  form  a  na- 
tional party  out  of.  The  late  army  of 
Arabi  Bey  was  made  up  almost  entirely 
of  this  class,  and  having  been  forcibly 
taken  from  their  lands,  they  were  only 
too  glad  to  throw  down  their  arms  and 
run  at  the  first  opportunity.  The  only 
soldiers  that  stood  fire  during  the  late  con- 
flict were  the  black  troops  from  the  Sou- 
dan. These  soldiers  were  formerly  slaves, 
stolen  from  the  interior  of  Africa,  and  set 
free  by  the  late  Khedive,  on  the  condition 
that  they  would  serve  in  the  army ;  and, 
having  no  country  to  fight  for,  and  being 
far  removed  from  their  homes,  with  no 
prospect  of  ever  returning,  are  a  class  of 
desperate,  reckless  men,  fond  of  slaughter, 
who  would  rather  die  than  live. 

No  importance  is  to  be  attached  to  the 
LANCE.  religious  movement  in  the  Soudan  under  ^'^^*=*- 
Senoussi,  the  so-called  Moslem  Messiah.  His  followers  are 
merely  troops  of  beggars  and  dervishes,  armed  with  war-clubs 
and  lances,  who  from  superstition  or  mercenary  motives  have 
joined  his  standard.  One  regiment  of  English  soldiers  would 
scatter  them  like  chaff  before  the  whirlwind. 


556  APPENDIX. 

The  annual  revenue  of  Egypt  is  about  $40,000,000,  collected 
principally  from  the  products  of  the  soil,  and  as  there  are  only 
5,000,000  acres  of  land  capable  of  cultivation,  this  imposes  an 
average  tax  of  eight  dollars  per  acre  on  these  poor  Fellaheen. 
It  is  this  oppressive  system  of  taxation  that  has  crushed  out  the 
life  of  the  nation,  and  still  hangs,  like  a  great  millstone,  around 
her  neck.  Nothing  could  be  more  wretched  than  the  condi- 
tion of  the  peasant  women  of  Egypt.  Ko  provision  is  made 
for  their  education ;  they  are  allowed  but  few  privileges,  are 
never  consulted  in  marriage,  do  all  the  drudgery,  carry  all 
the  water,  and  are  treated  worse  than  slaves  by  their  cruel 
husbands..  They  are  divorced  for  any  trifling  offense,  bought 
and  sold  like  cattle,  and  die  unmoumed.  There  are  few 
Arabs  but  would  grieve  more  over  the  loss  of  a  camel  than 
the  death  of  a  wife. 

Alexandria,  the  sea-port  of  Egypt,  and  largest  commercial 
city  in  Africa,  before  passing  through  its  late  fiery  ordeal,  was 
a  stirring  place  of  300,000  population,  and  rapidly  growing. 
We  give  its  eventful  history  elsewhere,  save  its  last  bloody 
chapter,  enacted  on  the  11th  of  June,  1882,  when  hundreds  of 
innocent  Christians  of  every  age  were  brutally  murdered  by 
fanatical  Mussulmans,  the  sequel  of  which  was  the  bombard- 
ment of  the  forts  by  Admiral  Seymour,  and  the  burning  of 
the  city  by  Arabi  Bey. 

It  was  this  spirit  of  rebellion  and  plunder,  and  the  Khedive's 
inability  to  enforce  law  and  preserve  order,  that  caused  En- 
gland to  send  her  army  and  navy  to  his  assistance. 

Arabi  Bey  is  nothing  more  than  a  religious  enthusiast,  and 
ambitious  rebel,  who,  under  the  popular. cry  of  "Egypt  for 
the  Egyptians,"  tried  to  get  up  a  national  party,  clamoring  for 


Arabi  Bey.  557 

independence.  But  there  can  be  no  national  party  in  Egypt, 
simply  because  they  are  not  a  nation,  merely  a  population,  that 
have  had  no  voice  in  their  national  affairs  for  twenty-four 
centuries,  and  are  too  ignorant,  and  have  been  too  long  under 
the  heel  of  despotism,  to  appreciate  a  free  government.  In 
the  recent  outbreak,  being  backed  by  the  army,  Arabi  first  at- 
tempted to  depose  the  Khedive.  Failing  in  this,  he  next,  like 
a  highwayman,  undertook  to  murder  or  drive  out  of  the  coun- 
try all  Europeans  and  Christians,  confiscating  their  property, 
and  even  threatened  to  inaugurate  a  holy  war  and  desolate  the 
whole  land  if  his  authority  was  not  recognized.  He  is  a  fanat- 
ical Mohammedan,  and  under  the  impression  that  he  was  a 
second  Cromwell,  divinely  inspired  to  restore  the  ancient  faith 
of  his  prophet,  urged  on  by  the  students  of  El  Azhar,  he  began 
his  crasade  with  sword  and  torch  against  aU  foreigners  and 
Christians. 

In  September,  18S1,  he  first  appeared  upon  the  Egyptian 
stage  as  a  mutinous  colonel  in  the  Khedive's  army,  claiming  to 
be  influenced  by  pure  and  patriotic  zeal  in  the  holy  cause  of 
Egyptian  independence.  Those  who  knew  him,  however,  de- 
clared that  the  so-called  patriot  was  a  restless,  ignorant  puppet, 
worked  by  secret  wire-pullers  in  Cairo  and  Constantinople,  to 
produce  anarchy  in  Egypt,  in  the  hope  of  exhibiting  the  in- 
competency of  the  Khedive  to  rule,  and  of  inflaming  the  fanat- 
ical hatred  of  the  population  against  the  European  control. 
Such  a  combination  would  cause  an  outbreak,  the  Khedive 
would  be  deposed,  the  Europeans  flee  the  country,  and  the 
Sultan  would  intervene  and  appoint  a  ruler  to  the  throne  of 
Egypt  who  would  re-establish  the  tottering  influence  of  the 
Porte. 


558  APPENDIX. 

The  entire  world  has  watched  with  interest  the  successive 
acts  in  this  drama.  The  curtain  rose  in  September,  1881,  with 
Arabi  Bey  at  the  head  of  his  mutinous  troops  defying  the 
Khedive  in  front  of  his  own  palace  in  Cairo.  The  curtain  has 
fallen  in  September,  1882,  with  Sir  Garnet  Wolseley's  victory. 
How  changed  the  scene  !  Arabi's  army  has  been  scattered  to 
the  winds  ;  all  national  aspirations  have  been  dispelled,  and  the 
late  leader  of  the  rebellion  is  left  without  a  follower — a 
crouching  sycophant,  at  the  feet  of  his  conquerors. 

England  and  the  other  great  powers  of  Europe  were  under 
treaty  stipulations  to  support  the  Khedive  and  put  down  this 
rebellion  ;  but  the  other  nations  refusing  to  interfere,  England 
nobly  assumed  the  responsibility,  crowning  herself  with  im- 
mortal glory. 

But  for  British  interference,  the  flames  that  consumed  the 
best  portion  of  Alexandria  would  have  spread  all  over  the 
East,  and  thousands  of  innocent  Christians  would  have  been 
cruelly  murdered.  The  battle  of  Tel-el-Kebir,  on  the  13th  of 
September,  1882,  will  determine  the  future  of  Egypt.  England 
is  there,  and  she  will  stay  there,  and  under  the  protectorate  of 
Great  Britain,  the  land  of  the  Pharaohs  will  recover  much  of 
her  ancient  glory.  Africa  will  be  opened  up  to  commerce, 
slavery  and  polygamy  will  be  abolished,  law  and  order  will  be 
enforced,  life  and  property  protected,  woman  emancipated, 
the  people  elevated,  schools  and  Christian  missions  established, 
and  civilization  promoted  throughout  the  dark  continent. 


CHAPTER   II. 

THE  SOUDAN  AND   EL   MAHDI. 

Extent,  Fertility,  Population  and  Productions  of  the  Country — Khartoum — Tim- 
buctoo^Slavery — Polygamy — Witchcraft — Superstition  and  Religion — Ck)n- 
quest  by  Sir  Samuel  Baker — Mohammed  Achmet,  or  El  Mahdi — Traditions 
concerning  him — Defeat  of  Hicks  Pasha — General  Gordon — Probable  Result 
of  Present  Conflict. 

TO  the  general  reader,  the  Soudan  is  almost  an  unknown 
region,  and  the  war  now  raging  in  that  quarter  under  El 
Mahdi  is  about  as  diflBcult  to  understand  as  a  Chinese  puzzle. 
All  eyes  just  now  are  turned  toward  Central  Africa,  and  all 
Christendom  is  earnestly  praying  that  the  light  of  the  glorious 
gospel  may  very  speedily  penetrate  the  Dark  Continent.  Hav- 
ing personally  explored  a  portion  of  this  country,  and  being  ac- 
quainted with  other  travelers  familiar  with  every  part  thereof, 
we  in  this  chapter  furnish  from  the  most  trustworthy  authorities 
a  description  of  this  mysterious  land,  give  a  brief  sketch  of  El 
Mahdi,  the  Moslem  Messiah,  and  set  forth  the  real  issues  in- 
volved in  the  struggle  now  going  on. 

The  country  called  the  Soudan,  or  "  the  land  of  the  blacks," 
extends  from  the  Red  Sea  westward  over  three  thousand  miles 
to  the  Senegal  River  and  chain  of  Kong  Mountains,  which  look 
down  upon  Senegambia  and  Liberia  on  the  Atlantic  coast.  On 
the  north  the  boundary  of  the  Soudan  is  the  great  Desert  of 
Sahara,  from  which  it  extends  southward  to  the  northern  water- 
shed of  the  Congo.     The  area  of  this,  the  richest  section  of  the 

(559) 


560  APPENDIX. 

heart  of  Africa,  is  equal  to  that  of  the  United  States  east  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains. 

There  are  three  principal  divisions  of  the  Soudan  :  Eastern, 
Central  and  Western,  containing  a  population  of  over  75,000,000 
souls,  more  than  half  of  whom  are  in  the  Eastern  and  Central 
portions.  This  vast,  fertile  and  populous  empire  of  many  petty 
kingdoms  of  savages  and  semi-savages,  cut  off  from  the  civilized 
world  on  the  north  by  the  great  desert  of  Africa ;  on  the  south 
by  the  still  unexplored  savage  countries,  M'ith  their  cannibal 
tribes,  under  the  Equator ;  on  the  west  by  the  pestilential  low- 
lands of  the  Atlantic  coast,  and  on  the  east  by  the  warlike  tribes 
of  Ishmaelites  along  the  Red  Sea,  remains  to-day  as  it  was  in 
the  days  of  Abraham,  excepting  the  elements  of  civilization  in- 
troduced by  the  wild  Arabs,  and  planted  here  and  there  at  their 
trading-posts. 

Western  Soudan  embraces  the  famous  city  of  Tirabuctoo,  the 
commercial  metropolis  of  the  overland  desert  traders,  and  covers 
the  whole  basin  of  the  great  river  Niger.  Khartoum,  the  capi- 
tal of  Central  Soudan,  is  situated  at  the  junction  of  the  Blue  and 
White  Nile.  The  inhabitants  of  this  section  are  fanatical  Mo- 
hammedans, in  sympathy  with  El  Mahdi,  and  this  is  the  Soudan 
of  which  General  Gordon  was  formerly  Pasha,  and  which  he  i& 
now  attempting  to  conciliate  and  hold. 

As  the  whole  Soudan,  from  the  river  Nile  to  the  mountain  bar- 
riers along  the  Atlantic,  lies  within  the  rainy  belt  of  the  Equa- 
tor, this  central  or  eastern  division,  from  which  El  Mahdi  draws 
his  troops  and  supplies,  could  be  made,  with  our  modern  imple- 
ments in  agriculture,  to  support  a  population  of  100,000,000. 
The  natives  of  the  Soudan,  as  the  name  imports,  are  negroes  of 
numerous  tribes,  naked  barbarians,  with  a  mixture  of  Arab  blood, 
very  rude,  ignorant  and  superstitious.     Polygamy  is  generally 


BEDOUIN  CHIEF  OF   EASTERN   SOUDAU. 


AFRICAN    SLAVERY.  563 

practised  among  them,  and  is  the  common  form  of  social  life 
throughout  Africa.  Nothing  is  known  of  domestic  purity.  The 
African  family  is  simply  a  cattle-kraal.  Usually  each  man  has 
as  many  women  in  his  kraal  as  he  can  buy  or  steal.  The  wives 
are  all  slaves,  and  the  female  slaves  are  all  concubines.  This 
system  involves  war,  jealousy  and  the  grossest  sensuality.  If  one 
man  monopolizes  many  women,  many  men  must  live  alone,  and 
the  only  way  to  make  them  live  alone  is  to  put  them  out  of  the 
world  or  into  the  slave-coffle.  These  women  are  generally  stolen 
from  neighboring  tribes.  The  sleepers  in  a  quiet  village,  a  few 
hours  before  daybreak,  will  be  surprised  by  some  raiding  party, 
their  huts  are  set  on  fire,  the  men  shot  down  like  dogs,  and  the 
women  and  children  carried  oflF  as  captives ;  but  men  robbed  of 
their  wives  and  daughters  do  not  submit  without  striking  back. 
Their  only  alternative  is  death  or  the  slave-coffle,  and  bloody 
scenes  are  often  witnessed  during  these  midnight  forays.  Some 
villages  are  built  on  piles  in  the  lakes,  and  others  high  up  among 
the  rocks,  as  a  protection  against  these  night  attacks. 

Another  curse  of  Africa  is  slavery — a  system  of  brigandage 
scarcely  equaled  by  the  most  sanguinary  wars.  Within  the  con- 
tinent slavery  is  universal.  During  the  last  four  hundred  years 
it  is  estimated  that  fifty  millions  of  slaves  have  been  carried  out 
of  this  country,  a  number  equal  to  the  entire  population  of  the 
United  States,  and  it  is  calculated  that  fully  fifteen  millions  of 
these  were  shipped  to  Xorth  and  South  America  to  labor  in  sugar 
fields  and  rice  swamps.  It  is  also  estimated  that  not  less  than 
five  hundred  thousand  perish  annually  from  the  slave  trade. 
Many  of  these  slaves  are  captives  of  war,  which  is  carried  on  in 
the  most  savage  and  ruthless  manner.  To  capture  one  hundred 
slaves,  ten  villages,  perhaps,  will  be  destroyed,  and  one  thousand 

natives,  old  and  young,  be  put  to  death ;  and  of  these  one  hun- 
36 


664  APPENDIX. 

dred  captives  not  more  than  twenty,  probably,  will  reach  the  last 
slave  market. 

Driven  hundreds  of  miles,  overloaded  with  burdens,  starved^ 
flogged,  heart-broken,  four  out  of  five,  according  to  Dr.  Living- 
stone, in  some  instances  nine  out  of  ten,  perish  on  the  road. 
"  One  day,"  he  says,  "  we  passed  a  woman  tied  by  the  neck  to  a 
tree,  and  dead ;  she  had  been  unable  to  keep  up  with  the  other 
slaves  in  a  gang,  and  her  master  had  determined  that  she  should 
not  become  the  property  of  any  one  else  if  she  recovered.     A 
day  or  two  after,  we  passed  a  slave  woman  stabbed  through  the 
body,  and  lying  on  the  path  in  a  pool  of  blood ;  an  Arab  had 
done  it  that  morning,  in  anger  at  losing  the  price  he  had  paid  for 
her,  because  she  was  unable  to  walk  any  longer."     Many  die  of 
positive   heart-break.      Dr.   Livingstone   further  adds:   "The 
strangest  disease  I  have  seen  in  this  country  seems  really  to  be 
broken-heartedness.     It  mostly  attacks  freemen  who  have  been 
captured  and  made  slaves.     They  endure  the  chains  until  they 
see  the  broad  river  Lualaba  rolling  between  them  and  their  free 
homes ;  then  they  lose  heart  and  suddenly  die.     Eight  in  one 
party  died  in  three  days  after  crossing  this  river.     They  ascribed 
their  only  pain  to  the  heart,  and  placed  the  hand  correctly  on  the 
spot.     Some  slavers  expressed  surprise  that  they  should  thus  die,, 
seeing  they  had  plenty  to  eat  and  no  work.     One  fine  boy  of  about, 
twelve  years,  when  about  to  expire,  was  laid  down  on  the  side 
of  the  path,  and  a  hole  dug  to  deposit  his  body  in.     He,  too,, 
said  nothing  was  the  matter  with  him  except  pain  in  the  heart.. 
Children  for  a  time  would  keep  up  with  wonderful  endurance,, 
but  it  happened  sometimes  that  the  sound  of  dancing  and  the 
merry  tinkle  of  bells  would  fall  on  their  ears  in  passing  some 
village ;  then  the  memory  of  home  and  happy  days  proved  too 
much  for  them ;  they  cried  and  sobbed,  the  broken-heart  came 
on,  and  they  rapidly  sank.*' 


WITCHCRAFT  SUPERSTITJOX.  565 

If,  to  procure  fifty  slaves,  five  hundred  natives  perish ;  and  if, 
of  the  fifty  captured,  but  ten  reach  the  final  market,  who  shall 
compute  the  villages  laid  waste,  the  homes  rendered  desolate,  and 
the  parents  and  children  slaughtered  during  these  awful  four 
hundred  years  which  have  witnessed  fifty  millions  of  slaves  torn 
from  the  bosom  of  Africa  ? 

To  polygamy  and  slavery  we  are  to  add  witchcraft,  f  etichism, 
and  superstition,  which  permeate  the  whole  structure  of  African 
society,  and  are  tlie  greatest  obstacles  to  the  civilization  of  this 
continent.  Xo  one  is  supposed  to  die  a  natural  death,  nor  to  be 
killed  in  war,  hunting,  or  by  accident ;  every  death  is  charged  to 
witchcraft,  and  their  lives  are  spent  in  constant  fear  of  imaginary 
malignant  spirits.  The  king  of  Ashantee  in  building  a  new  pal- 
ace recently,  slaughtered  two  hundred  young  girls  for  the  pur- 
pose of  mixing  with  their  blood  the  mortar  used  in  the  erection 
of  his  royal  residence ;  all  to  keep  off  evil  spirits.  When  a  per- 
son dies,  the  medicine  man  is  sent  for,  who  goes  through  certain 
incantations  to  find  out  who  it  was  that  bewitched  the  deceased. 
Finally  some  one  is  suspected,  and  the  fanatical  crowd,  armed 
with  spears  or  war-clubs,  with  a  wild  cry  and  thirsting  for 
human  blood,  rush  upon  the  accused,  generally  some  old  woman, 
binding  and  dragging  her  down  to  the  river,  where  she  is  com- 
pelled to  drink  a  poisonous  potion  called  mboundou,  under  the 
superstitious  belief  that  if  the  accused  is  innocent  the  cup  of 
poison  will  not  kill  her ;  but  it  is  sure  death  in  every  instance. 
Sometimes  several  persons  are  suspected,  and  whole  tribes  of 
these  fetich  nations  are  rapidly  being  exterminated  through  this 
superstitious  fear,  the  details  of  which  are  too  shocking  to  relate. 

With  the  discovery  of  the  two  great  equatorial  lakes  of  the 
Nile,  the  one  by  Speke  and  Grant  in  1863,  and  the  other  by 
Samuel  Baker  in  1864,  the  Khedive,  Ismail  Pasha,  secured  the 


666  APPENDIX. 

services  of  Baker  to  proceed  with  a  military  force  up  the  river 
to  those  lakes,  for  the  annexation  of  all  the  intervening  countries 
on  both  sides  of  the  Nile  to  the  Egyptian  viceroyalty ;  and  next, 
to  undertake  the  suppression  of  the  river  slave-trade.  Setting  out 
from  Cairo  with  a  force  of  sixteen  hundred  men.  Sir  Samuel 
Baker,  in  the  course  of  two  years,  after  much  hard  fighting  and 
many  narrow  escapes,  returned  to  Cairo  in  1873,  and  reported 
the  annexation  of  the  Soudan  and  suppression  of  the  slave  traffic 
completely  successful  in  the  whole  valley  of  the  Nile.  Before 
this  work  of  suppression  immense  numbers  of  slave-traders  from 
the  Soudan,  under  the  pretense  of  trading  in  ivory — black  ivory — 
had  organized  themselves  as  piratical  bands  to  pillage  the  natives 
and  kidnap  the  women  and  children,  to  be  sold  in  Khartoum  as 
slaves.  Baker  estimates  that  not  less  than  fifty  thousand  slaves 
had  for  years  been  annually  sent  down  the  Nile,  closely  packed  in 
small  boats  of  about  fifty  tons.  And  frightful  were  the  horrors 
of  this  traffic,  as  often  two  hundred  and  fifty  or  more  slaves  were 
crowded  into  one  of  these  little  vessels.  Since  the  removal  of 
Ismail  Pasha  this  slave-trade  has  revived,  and  doubtless 
these  slave-traders  are  the  chief  supporters  of  El  Mahdi,  who 
is  only  used  by  them  as  a  catspaw  to  draw  the  chestnuts  from 
the  fire. 

Mohammed  Achmet,  the  Moslem  Messiah,  who  has  startled 
the  world  by  his  bold  assumptions,  and  about  whom  so  little  is 
known,  is  a  native  of  Dongola,  a  small  town  on  the  Nile  above 
the  third  cataract,  and  bordering  upon  the  Nubian  desert.  In  his 
youth  he  was  apprenticed  to  his  uncle,  a  boat-builder,  living  not 
far  from  Berber.  Being  of  a  studious  and  religious  turn  of 
mind,  he  soon  left  his  trade  to  enter  a  school  at  Khartoum, 
where  he  became  absorbed  in  learning  the  doctrines  of  Islam,  and 
was  ordained  a  Moslem  sheik.     Soon  after  he  removed  to  the 


EL   MAHDI.  567 

island  of  Abba,  in  the  White  Nile,  where  he  led  a  fakir's  life  of 
abject  humility,  repeating  for  hours  together  one  of  the  names  of 
the  Deity.  Here  he  excavated  a  deep  cave  in  the  natural  rock, 
into  which  he  retired,  spending  most  of  his  time  in  prayer,  fast- 
ing and  the  burning  of  incense,  and  so  concealing  himself  in  the 
dark  recesses  of  his  hiding-place  as  to  impress  the  people  with  a 
sense  of  his  saintly  character,  and  lead  many  to  believe  that  he 
had  power  to  render  himself  invisible  and  to  work  miracles. 

In  1881,  taking  advantage  of  Arabi  Bey's  rebellion  and  the 
unsettled  condition  of  the  country,  he  openly  announced  himself 
to  be  the  Mahdi  foretold  by  Mohammed,  and  whose  advent  had 
been  predicted  for  about  that  period.  He  claimed  to  have  a  di- 
vine mission  to  restore  the  ancient  faith,  establish  a  universal  re- 
ligion, and  to  destroy  all  who  refused  to  receive  him  as  a  true 
prophet.  His  name  and  austere  piety,  together  with  certain  pro- 
phetic marks  upon  his  person,  such  as  one  arm  being  longer  than 
the  other,  and  one  eye  being  jet  black  and  the  other  brown,  in- 
fluenced many  ignorant  sheiks,  fakirs  and  dervishes,  with  their 
credulous  followers,  fired  by  Oriental  enthusiasm,  to  join  his 
standard  and  rebel  against  the  authority  of  Egypt. 

El  Mahdi's  career  from  the  first  has  been  attended  with  al- 
most unvarying  success.  More  than  one  Egyptian  stronghold 
had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  his  fanatic  horde,  when  Hicks 
Pasha,  an  English  officer,  was  sent  out  by  the  Khedive  with  a 
force  often  thousand  Egyptian  soldiers  to  suppress  the  rebellious 
prophet.  The  hostile  armies  met  at  El  Obeid,  west  of  the  White 
Nile.  The  encounter  was  short  and  savage.  Its  appalling  re- 
sult was,  not  only  the  defeat  and  death  of  Hicks  Pasha,  but  the 
destruction  almost  to  a  man  of  his  entire  army  on  the  battle-field. 
This  terrific  blow  at  Egyptian  rule  added  immensely  to  the  pres- 
tige of  El  Mahdi,  giving  sanction  to  his  claim,  and  drawing  mul- 


568  APPENDIX. 

titudes  to  his  standard,  until  he  is  now  seriously  threatening 
Khartoum  and  the  Egyptian  fortresses  protecting  the  Soudan  at 
Dongola,  Berber/  Sennaar,  and  other  places  between  the  Upper 
Nile  and  the  Red  Sea. 

El  Obeid,  the  chief  town  of  the  province  of  Kordofan,  may 
now  be  regarded  as  the  Mahdi's  base  of  operations,  and  he  could 
have  no  condition  of  circumstances  more  favorable.  The  natu 
ral  fertility  of  the  soil,  the  rich  pastures  for  cattle,  a  tropical  sun, 
and  nine  months  of  tropical  rains,  abounding  crops  of  cereals, 
roots  and  fruits,  with  little  or  no  cultivation,  while  the  plains 
and  woods  are  alive  with  game,  from  the  elephant  down,  and  the 
rivers  swarm  with  fish,  constitute  a  condition  of  things  for  human 
subsistence  without  a  parallel  outside  the  Soudan. 

We  have  every  reason  for  believing  that  El  Mahdi  is  in  league 
with  the  slave-traders  of  the  Soudan.  These  ivory  merchants, 
as  they  are  called,  maintain  a  great  number  of  settlements  in  the 
interior.  They  have  apportioned  the  whole  country  among 
themselves,  and  have  brought  the  natives  under  complete  vas- 
salage. Under  an  armed  guard  from  Khartoum  they  send  out 
their  expeditions  to  their  depots,  and  thus  hold  the  right  of  way 
through  those  savage  tribes  of  the  Soudan  by  an  armed  occupa- 
tion. 

El  Mahdi,  therefore,  we  may  safely  assume,  with  all  his  fanat- 
icism as  a  Crusader  against  the  "Christian  dogs,"  is  only  an 
instrument  of  the  slave-traders  for  the  protection  of  their  infa- 
mous traflB.c.  And  with  forty  millions  of  savages  under  the  con- 
trol of  these  traders,  and  with  the  fruitful  districts  of  the  Soudan 
to  draw  upon  for  his  army  supplies,  the  Mahdi  may  prove  a  very 

*  Berber  was  surprised  and  taken  by  El  Mahdi's  troops  at  daybreak,  May  26th, 
1884.  Most  of  the  garrison  and  inhabitants,  except  the  women  and  children, 
were  massacred. 


EL   MAHDI.  669 

formidable  foe  for  General  Gordon  to  crush.  It  .was  this  slave 
power  that  General  Gordon  sought  to  conciliate  in  his  first  proc- 
lamation after  reaching  Khartoum.  As  to  the  heroic  Gordon, 
we  have  no  fears  in  reference  to  his  personal  safety.  If  England 
refuses  a  helping  hand,  his  mission  may  fail ;  he  may  lose  his 
army;  he  may  have  to  abandon  Khartoum;  still,  we  believe 
some  door  will  be  opened  for  his  escape :  but  will  this  excuse 
England  for  throwing  open  the  whole  Nile  Valley  to  El  Mahdi, 
and  for  turning  over  the  dense  population  of  the  Soudan  to  the 
mercy  of  brutal  slave-traders  ? 

This  remarkable  man,  who  seems  destined  to  play  a  stormy 
part  in  modern  history,  is  described  as  tall,  slim  and  straight, 
with  the  true  Arab  complexion,  black  hair  cut  close  to  the  head, 
and  a  black,  pointed  beard.  His  manner  is  stern,  serious,  and 
often  absent,  as  if  in  deep  study.  He  is  very  reticent,  giving  his 
orders  in  few  words,  closely  observing  all  that  transpires.  He 
maintains  rigidly  his  devotional  exercises,  and  at  each  crisis  of 
action  professes  to  hold  communication  with  Allah,  from  whom 
he  pretends  to  derive  the  inspiration  to  guide  him  to  a  successful 
issue.  In  battle  he  is  said  to  become  a  true  Oriental  warrior, 
kindling  to  an  intense  ardor,  and  becoming  savagely  intoxicated 
by  the  din  and  fury  of  the  conflict. 

"His  later  operations  indicate  that  he  is  a  soldier  of  no  mean 
order,  and  that  he  well  understands  the  conditions  of  warfare  in 
the  desert  regions  of  the  Soudan.  He  appears  to  have  main- 
tained a  wonderful  efficiency  of  organization  among  the  semi- 
barbarians  who  so  enthusiastically  follow  his  standard,  and  to 
have  the  capacity  of  creating  an  army  out  of  the  most  unpromis- 
ing material."  His  exploits  have  made  him,  for  the  present  at 
least,  the  absolute  master  of  the  Soudan,  and  he  now  assumes  the 
offensive  against  the  combined  forces  of  Egypt  and  England. 


670 


APPENDIX. 


Such  is  the  man  who  has  cut  off  the  flower  of  the  Egyptian  army, 
carried  dismay  into  the  holy  places  of  Mecca,  frightened  the 
Sultan  on  his  throne,  horrified  all  Europe  by  his  bloody  deeds, 
and  who  now  proclaims  himself  El  Mahdi  of  the  world. 


?^v 


CHAPTER  HI. 

CONCLDSION MULTUM  IN  PARVO. 

Authenticity  of  Scripture  —  Egyptian  Sculpture  —  Colossal  Sphinx  —  Southern 
Cross — Pyramids  of  Ghizeh — Sinaitic  Inscription — Wilderness  of  Wander- 
ing—  Ash  Beds  of  the  Israehtes'  Camp-fires  —  Overthrow  of  Sodom  and 
Gomorrah — Lot's  Wife — Confirmation  of  Book  of  Daniel — Exploraiions  iu 
Assyria — Lion's  Den  and  Fiery  Furnace — Ur  of  the  Chaldees — Home  of 
Abraham — Temple  of  the  Moon — Ancient  Graves — Tower  of  Babel — Writing 
4,000  Years  Old — Late  Discoveries  at  Pompeii,  Mycenae,  and  Troy — Deluge 
Records — Discovery  of  Sippara,  Oldest  City  in  the  World. 

IN  preparing  this  volume  our  aim  was  to  crowd  as  much 
information  as  possible  into  the  smallest  compass,  avoiding 
all  unnecessary  details,  giving  simply  the  latest  facts ;  leaving 
the  reader  to  draw  his  own  conclusions.  But  as  many  of  these 
statements  are  entirely  new  and  somewhat  startling,  and  as 
much  controversy  has  been  awakened  touching  the  correctness 
of  some,  we  deem  it  proper  to  append  a  few  chapters  of  addi- 
tional matter,  explaining  more  fully  certain  points  only  inci- 
dentally noticed. 

In  this  agnostic  age  there  is  a  disposition  to  rule  God  out  of 
the  universe,  ignore  entirely  the  supernatural,  doubt  all  revealed 
truths,  and  reject  every  thing  like  intuitive  knowledge,  receiv- 
ing that  only  as  truth  which  is  derived  through  the  organs  of 
sense ;  nothing  more  than  a  revival  of  the  old  Epicurean  phi- 
losophy, somewhat  modified.  Paul  had  to  combat  these  same 
errors,  and  denounces  this  class  of  infidels  as  "  proud  blasphem- 
ers, lovers  of  pleasure  more  than  lovers  of  God ;  men  of  cor- 
rupt minds — ever  learning  and  never  able  to  come   to  the 


572  APPENDIX. 

knowledge  of  the  truth."  '     "  Nevertheless,"  the  apostle  adds, 
"  the  foundation  of  God  standeth  sure."  ' 

Others,  who  are  not  willing  to  go  to  this  extreme,  deny  the 
historical  narratives  of  the  Old  Testament,  or  treat  them  as 
mere  legends  ;  reject  the  theory  of  the  origin  of  our  race  as 
given  in  the  book  of  Genesis  ;  ridicule  the  idea  of  God  dwell- 
ing with  the  patriarchs  ;  even  deny  that  Moses  was  the  author 
of  the  laws  he  gave  to  Israel,  or  that  David  composed  the 
psalms  ascribed  to  him  ;  and  boldly  assert  that  Solomon  never 
wrote  the  Proverbs  that  bear  his  name. 

"We  are  free  to  confess  that  we  have  no  sympathy  with 
the  above  views.  The  Bible  states  certain  great  facts,  and 
these  facts  are  recorded  in  God's  word  because  they  are  facts. 
"We  believe  in  the  genuineness  and  divine  authenticity  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures,  and  have  published  our  explorations  in  the 
East  to  show  how  wonderfully  late  discoveries  in  the  lands  of 
the  Bible  corroborate  the  statements  of  the  inspired  volume. 

"We  have  studiously  avoided  speaking  positively  concerning 
any  place  or  event  where  a  doubt  existed  in  reference  to  its 
correctness.  In  our  remarks  on  Egyptian  hieroglyphics  we 
carefully  qualify  every  expression,  giving  only  a  few  brief 
details,  and  merely  cite  Brugsch  Bey  in  reference  to  the  fam- 
ine,'  because  that  learned  Egyptologer  believed  that  di- 
rect allusion  is  here  had  to  the  famine  that  prevailed  in 
the  days  of  Joseph.  He  affirms  that  the  text  is  perfectly 
simple  and  clear,  and  that  the  most  rigid  criticism  cannot 
object  to  his  conclusions.*  The  sculptures  represent  a  num- 
ber of  slaves  carrying  wheat  in  sacks,  and  filling  the  royal 
granaries. 
'  2  Timothy,  iii,  2-7.    ^  Timothy  ii,  19.     ^  Page  25.    *  Histoire  d'Egypte,  p.  177. 


EGYPTIAN  SCULPTURE. 


573 


We  do  not  know  positively  that  the  persons  represented 
making  brick  in  the  sculpture'  are  Jews,  but  they  appear 
to  be,  and  the  inference  is,  they  are.  Here  may  be  seen 
a  large  number  of  slaves  going  through  the  whole  process 
of  making  bricks,  under  the  eyes  of  their  task  -  masters, 
and,  above  the  sculpture,  an  order  of  the  king  directing  the 
captives  "  to  build  the  temple  of  the  great  god."  True,  the 
slaves  are  not  called  Hebrews  in  the  royal  decree,  but  they 
have  Asiatic  features,  and  are  evidently  of  the  Semitic  race, 


EGYPTIAN    GRANARIES. 


some  of  them  with  bearded  faces,  looking  very  much  like 
Jews  ;  and  as  the  Hebrews  were  the  only  foreigners,  so  far  as 
known,  in  bondage  at  that  time  in  Egypt,  is  it  not  more 
than  probable  that  reference  is  here  had  to  the  oppressed 
Israelites  ? 

That  the  colossal  Sphinx  was  an  idol  and  the  local  deity  of 
the  old  Egyptians,  is  fully  attested  by  the  sanctuary  in  front 
of  the  image,  and  the  altar  of  incense  that  stood  between  its 
huge  paws.     On  a  monumental  tablet,  older  than  the  pynt- 

'  See  page  25. 


674  APPENDIX. 

mids,  lately  found  by  M.  Mariette,  near  the  Sphinx,  and  now 
in  the  museum  at  Cairo,  may  be  seen  representations  of  all 
the  principal  Egyptian  divinities,  and  among  them  the  Sphinx, 
which  is  called  the  god  of  Hor-Em-khoo — "  The  sun  in  his 
resting-place."  On  another  tablet,  found  in  the  sanctuary  of 
the  Sphinx,  Thothmes  lY.  is  represented  offering  a  libation 
and  incense  to  this  god  ;  and  on  two  other  tablets  in  this 
same  temple  are  similar  representations  of  Rameses  the  great 
worshiping  the  same  deity,  to  which  are  ascribed  all  the 
attributes  of  a  god,  such  as  granting  power  and  life  to  the 
king ;  showing,  as  Pliny  observes,  that  the  Sphinx  partook 
of  the  character  of  a  local  deity,  and  received  divine  honors. 

Some  have  questioned  whether  the  Southern  Cross  could 
be  seen  from  the  Nile  Yalley  between  Thebes  and  Syene; 
but  there  is  no  ground  for  doubt  in  the  case.  I  carefully 
noted  down  every  event  of  interest,  and  by  referring  to  my 
diary  under  date  of  January  7,  1875,  I  find  the  following 
entry  :  "  Tied  our  boat  up  last  night  a  few  miles  above  Luxor. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mills,  from  Cincinnati,  O. ;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Balch, 
of  New  York,  and  Mr.  Warner,  from  Hartford,  Conn.,  came 
on  board  to  spend  the  evening.  About  five  o'clock  this  morn- 
ing we  had  a  fine  view  of  the  Southern  Cross,  which  appeared 
far  away  to  the  south,  directly  above  the  green  waters  of  the 
Nile.  The  effect  was  grand.  The  sky  being  clear  and  the 
night  favorable,  with  no  hills  to  obstruct  our  vision."  So,  if 
this  constellation,  as  some  contend,  cannot  be  seen  north  of 
about  twenty-four  degrees  of  north  latitude,  the  maps  of 
Egypt  are  incorrectly  drawn,  and  Thebes  should  be  located 
several  degrees  further  south. 

Our  statement   that   the   Great   Pyramid   of   Cheops  was 


GREAT  PYRAMID  OF  CHEOPS.  575 

originally  beautifully  cased  and  covered  with  hieroglyphics, 
is  supported  by  the  best  authorities,  both  ancient  and  modern. 
The  father  of  historians  says :  "  On  the  outside  were  inscribed 
in  Egyptian  characters  the  various  sums  of  money  expended 
in  the  progress  of  the  work,"  etc. ;  '  Sir  Gardner  "Wilkinson, 
that  "  it  was  covered  with  a  smooth  inaccessible  casing."  ' 
And  Dean  Stanley  adds,  "  It  also  seems  that  these  smooth 
outsides  were  covered  with  sculpture."  *  According  to  the 
Hindoo  records,  it  was  "  cased  with  colored  marbles,"  which, 
at  least,  is  probable,  as  fragments  of  marble  and  granite  were 
found  among  the  debris.  And  Dr.  Shaw,  in  his  Travels,  says,* 
"It  was  incrusted  all  over  with  the  finest  granite  marble." 
All  of  which  is  confirmed  by  Abd-el-Lateef,  who  states  that 
"  the  polished  exterior  stones  were  covered  with  writing,  which, 
if  copied  upon  paper,  would  fill  more  than  ten  thousand  pages." 
As  a  settlement,  however,  of  all  disputes  upon  this  subject. 
Col.  Howard  Vyse,  in  1837,  actually  discovered  two  of  the 
casing-stones  in  situ.,  and  on  the  Pyramid  of  Chephren,  near 
by,  more  than  ten  thousand  square  feet  of  the  original  casing 
may  still  be  seen.  Then,  it  is  a  historic  fact  that  the  casing- 
stones  of  the  Great  Pyramid  were  removed  in  A.  D.  1166,  by 
order  of  Sultan  Saladin,  to  build  his  citadel  at  Cairo. 

Pliny,  in  describing  the  grand  temple  of  Diana,  says :  "  It 
was  four  hundred  and  twenty-five  feet  in  length,  two  hundred 
and  twenty  broad,  and  supported  by  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
seven  columns,  each  of  which  had  been  contributed  by  some 
prince,  and  were  sixty  feet  high  ;  thirty-six  of  them  were 
richly  carved."*     Falkner  and  other  historians  speak  of  its 

'  Herodotus,  book  ii,  EuL  cxxv.  »  Wilkinson's  Hand-book  of  Egypt,  p.  185 

^Siuai  and  Palestine,  p.  52.      *  VoL  iL,  p.  201.      »  -q^^^  Xat.,  xxxiv.,  21. 


576  APPENDIX. 

roof  being  of  cedar  and  cypress.'  We  were  present  when  Dr. 
Wood  discovered  this  long-buried  temple  in  1871.  We  did 
not  measure  the  columns,  but  saw  the  coloring  and  gilding  on 
them,  and  the  charred  remains  of  the  edifice.  And  it  is  diffi- 
cult for  us  to  conceive  how  a  building,  constructed  entirely  of 
marble,  as  some  contend,  could  be  destroyed  by  fire — a  historic 
fact  never  before  denied. 

The  Sinaitic  inscriptions  are  not  confined  to  Wady  Mukat- 
teb,  but  are  found  all  over  the  peninsula  of  Sinai.  Some, 
doubtless,  are  Nabathean,  and  others  Christian,  but  those  in 
Wady  Magarah,  Dean  Stanley  says,  "  are  among  the  oldest  hie- 
roglyphics in  the  world." '  And,  what  at  least  is  interesting, 
an  oval  was  here  found  bearing  the  identical  name  of  Joseph 
the  Hebrew.  Cosmas,  the  Indian  traveler,  about  A.  D.  518, 
makes  mention  of  the  rocks  in  the  peninsula  being  "  written 
with  carved  Hebrew  characters."  And  Diodorus,  six  centuries 
earlier,  B.  C.  59,  of  a  stone  altar,  "  very  old,  inscribed  with 
ancient  unknown  letters." ' 

Dr.  S.  C.  Bartlett,  in  his  "  Egypt  to  Palestine,"  speaks  of 
numerous  ash-beds  he  discovered  in  the  desert  of  wandering,  some 
with  charcoal  in  them.*  These  hillocks,  Mr.  Palmer  says,  "  are 
found  for  miles  around,  generally  small  inclosures  of  stone,  the 
largest  about  twelve  feet  in  diameter,  and  evidently  the  remains 
of  a  large  encampment.  The  stones  show  the  action  of  fire, 
and  on  digging  we  found  charcoal  in  great  abundance."  '  These 
ash-beds  are  out  in  the  desert,  where  there  never  could  have 
been  either  water  or  vegetation  to  sustain  a  village.  They  are 
also  on  the  direct  route  of  the  Israelites,  and  Mr.  Palmer  gives 

'  Ephesus  and  Temple  of  Diana,  1857.  '^  Sinai  and  Palestine,  pp.  57,  7L 

2  Diodorus,  iii,  42.    <  Page  290.    ^  Desert  of  the  Exodus,  pp.  25-27. 


WILDERNESS  OF  WANDERING.  577 

it  as  bis  opinion  that  they  not  only  mark  the  encampment  of 
Israel,  but  that  the  graves  outside  the  camp  are  the  graves  of 
those  who  were  cut  off  by  the  plague  mentioned  Numbers 
xi,  34.  Dean  Stanley  says,  "  These  rude  burial  grounds,  with 
the  many  nameless  head-stones,  found  in  the  wilderness  of  wan- 
dering, far  away  from  human  habitation,  are  such  as  the  host 
of  Israel  must  have  left  behind  them  at  the  different  stages  of 
their  progress."  The  Arabs  still  call  them,  Turhet  es  Yahoud 
— "  the  graves  of  the  Jews."  * 

Lieut.  Conder,  after  describing  several  of  these  ash-heaps  on 
the  plain  of  Gilgal,  closes  his  report  with  the  remark :  "  It  may 
seem  bold  to  suppose  that  these  mounds  are  traces  of  the  per- 
manent Israelite  camp  on  the  spot,  yet  we  know  that  nothing 
in  Palestine  is  more  ancient  than  are  such  earthworks." '  Some 
of  these  hillocks  have  since  been  found  to  contain  calcined 
stones,  charcoal,  ashes,  and  other  traces  of  a  deserted  camp. 

Though  but  little  remains  of  ancient  Jericho— not  a  house — 
its  site  is  easily  determined  by  the  fountains  and  aqueducts 
that  supplied  the  city  with  water,  also  by  the  ford  of  the  Jor- 
dan, and  old  highway  leading  to  Jerusalem,  and  by  the  stone 
quarries,  brick  kilns,  and  other  earth-works  that  still  mark  the 
spot.  That  there  are  pillars  of  salt  standing  in  every  fantastic 
shape  in  the  vicinity  of  Jebel  Usdum  on  the  shores  of  the  Dead 
Sea,  and  that  others  are  constantly  forming  by  accretion  from 
the  spray  and  exhalations  of  the  sea,  all  who  have  explored  that 
region  will  admit ;  and  as  no  corpse  would  likely  decompose  in 
such  a  locality,  but  would  soon  become  incrusted  with  salt,  and 
in  time  a  pillar  of  salt,  there  is  nothing  very  marvelous  in  the 
Bible  statement  that  Lot's  wife  "  became  a  pillar  of  salt." ' 

'  Sinai  and  Palestine,  p.  23.    »  Quarterly  Statement,  April,  1874.    ^  Genesis  xix,  2& 


578  APPENDIX 

Our  theory  of  the  destruction  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  and 
the  other  cities  of  the  plain  by  volcanic  agency  is  sustained  by 
the  general  character  of  the  country  and  all  recent  explorations 
in  the  Ghor.  Russegger,  after  expressing  his  opinion  that  the 
whole  valley  of  the  Jordan  was  volcanic  in  its  origin,  remarks : 
"  This  idea  is  supported  by  the  crater-like  form  of  the  basins 
of  the  Lake  of  Tiberias  and  the  Dead  Sea,  and  by  the  many 
other  tokens  of  volcanic  action,  past  and  present."  * 

From  Hon.  George  Grove  we  learn  that  in  Palestine,  bitu- 
men or  asphaltum  is  only  met  with  in  the  valley  of  the  Jordan ; 
that  the  rocks  and  soil  on  the  plain  of  Esdraelon  are  volcanic ; 
that  streams  of  lava,  very  porous,  containing  much  pumice  and 
scoria,  with  beds  of  basalt,  are  found  back  of  Tiberias,  and  three 
ancient  craters  near  Safed ;  that  east  of  the  Jordan  the  most  ex- 
tensive and  remarkable  developments  of  igneous  rocks  are  found, 
covering  a  large  portion  of  the  surface  from  Damascus  to 
south  of  the  Dead  Sea  and  beyond,  and  that  the  hot,  salt,  and 
fetid  springs  along  the  valley  of  the  Jordan,  and  the  rock  salt, 
niter,  and  sulphur  of  the  Dead  Sea,  are  all  evidences  of  volcanic 
or  plutonic  action  *  — facts  which  we  also  gather  from  Ne wbold, 
Sir  Charles  Lyell,  Drake,  Tristram,  and  many  others. 

M.  Lartet  found  basalt  and  other  evidences  of  volcanic  ac- 
tion in  the  Jordan  valley,  and  directly  east  of  the  Dead  Sea 
traces  of  three  eruptions  reaching  down  to  its  shores.  He  also 
mentions  hot  springs  and  bituminous  eruj^tions  similar  to  those 
which  follow  volcanic  action.  And  yet  he  did  not  see  all,  as 
Lieut.  Conder,  after  showing  that  the  Jordan  crevasse  was 
produced  by  volcanic  action,  and  that  the  country  around  Bai- 
san  was  purely  volcanic,  closes  his  report  with  the  statement : 

'  Russegger,  p.  206.         «  Smith's  Bible  Dictionary,  article  Palestine. 


DAKICS    THE   MEDE.  579 

*'  It  is  a  remarkable  instance  of  the  ignorance  of  Palestine  ge- 
ology, that  this  great  field  of  basalt,  extending  over  perhaps 
two  hundred  square  miles,  is  not  shown  on  Lartet's  map."  ' 

Dean  Stanley,  referring  to  this  region,  says :  "  Traces  of  vol- 
canic agency  in  the  limestone  bed  of  the  Jordan  valley  are 
found  here  in  a  greater  degree  than  anywhere  else  in  Palestine. 
Of  this  nature  are  the  masses  of  bitumen  which  give  their 
name  to  the  Asphaltic  Lake,  the  warm  springs  at  Callirrhoe,  on 
the  Dead  Sea,  and  the  remains  of  lava  on  the  shore.  And  that 
some  such  means  were  employed  in  the  catastrophe  of  the  five 
cities  is  now  generally  acknowledged."  ^ 

Dr.  Thomson  gives  it  as  his  opinion  "  that,  until  the  destruc- 
tion of  Sodom,  this  was  a  fresh-water  lake,  and  that  its  charac- 
ter was  changed  at  that  time  by  the  obtrusion  from  below  of 
rock-salt  and  other  volcanic  products."  ^  And  Dr.  Andei-son, 
Lieut.  Lynch's  geologist,  further  adds :  "  In  the  Jordan  valley 
the  basalt  is  frequently  encountered.  It  is  visible  on  the  banks 
and  in  the  bed  of  the  river,  but  so  covered  with  deposits  of 
tufa,  conglomerate  and  alluvium,  as  not  to  be  traceable  without 
difficulty,"  *  clearly  showing  that  this  whole  region  has  fre- 
quently been  disturbed  by  earthquakes  and  volcanic  eruptions. 

Researches  in  Assyria  very  fully  confirm  the  Book  of  Dan- 
iel, and  shed  much  additional  light  on  many  seemingly  contra- 
dictory statements.  It  has  been  contended  that  "  Darius  the 
Mede,"  referred  to  by  Daniel,^  was  the  same  person  as  Darius 
the  Persian,  son  of  Hystaspes,  mentioned  by  Herodotus  and 
other  Greek  historians ;  and  that,  therefore,  the  biblical  chro- 
nology of  that  period  was  incorrect,  as  there  was  no  evidence 

'  Quarterly  Statement.  July,  1874.        *  Sinai  and  Palestine,  p.  285. 
«Land  and  Book,  p.  623.       *  Anderson,  136-152.        *  Daniel  v.  31. 
37 


580  APPENDIX. 

that  the  son  of  Hystaspes  ever  reigned  in  Babylon.  Recent 
discoveries,  however,  show  that  this  is  an  error.  Dr.  Oppert, 
one  of  the  most  eminent  Assyrian  scholars  in  France,  says  that 
at  least  fifty  tablets  have  been  recovered,  showing  that  Darius, 
the  Persian  did  rule  at  Babylon  during  the  very  period  in  dis- 
pute. We  also  find  that  Nabonidus  and  his  eldest  son,  Bel- 
shazzar,  were  associated  in  the  government  of  the  country — 
hence  Daniel  was  made  the  third  ruler  in  the  kingdom,  Bel- 
shazzar  being  second;  and  that  Kabonidus  was  at  Borsippa,. 
and  Belshazzar  in  Babylon,  the  night  the  city  was  taken  by 
Cyrus. 

Another  confirmation  of  the  accuracy  of  this  book  has  also- 
come  to  light.  Daniel  records  the  punishment  common  at 
Babylon  as  being  so  extremely  cruel,  such  as  Shadrach,  Meshach,. 
and  Abednego  being  cast  into  a  burning  fiery  furnace,  and 
Daniel  and  his  enemies  into  a  den  of  lions,  that  some  have  de- 
nied the  authenticity  of  the  book  on  this  ground  alone.  In  the 
days  of  Asshur-bani-pal,  son  of  Esarhaddon,  King  of  Assyria. 
there  is  contemporary  evidence  that  both  these  punishments 
were  in  use  at  Babylon  a  few  years  before  the  reign  of  Nebu- 
chadnezzar. Saulmugina,  brother  of  Asshur-bani-pal,  King  of 
Assyria,  was  made  by  his  relative  king  of  Babylon,  where  he 
reigned  prosperously  for  seven  years.  Afterward,  for  some 
unknown  reason,  he  rebelled  against  his  elder  brother,  but, 
after  a  severe  contest,  was  defeated  and  taken  prisoner.  The 
Assyrian  monarchs  appear  to  have  been  always  animated  with 
a  spirit  of  revenge.  Hence  we  are  not  surprised  to  find  among 
the  inscriptions  containing  the  annals  of  Asshur-bani-pal  the 
following :  "  I  ordered  Saulmugina,  my  rebellious  brother,  who 
made  war  with  me,  to  be  cast  into  a  fiery  burning  furnace  !  "^ 


mmm 


THE  SCKIPTUKES  COEEOBORATED.  583 

Of  Saulmugiiia's  followers  many  perished  with  him  in  the 
flames,  and  of  those  who  escaped,  but  were  subsequently  capt- 
ured^ it  is  said,  "  The  rest  of  the  people  I  threw  alive  among 
the  hulls  and  lions,  as  Sennacherib,  my  grandfather,  used  to 
throw  men  among  them." 

These  inscriptions  also  give  evidence  of  the  observance  of 
the  Sabbath  among  the  early  Babylonians.  The  cuneiform 
text  of  the  first  and  fifth  of  the  "  Creation  Tablets,"  published 
by  the  late  George  Smith,  which  belong  to  the  reign  of  Asshur- 
bani-pal,  but  which  were  copies  of  earlier  inscriptions  supposed 
to  be  as  old  as  B.  C.  2000,  after  speaking  of  the  upper  region 
before  it  was  called  heaven,  and  the  lower  region  before  it  was 
called  earth,  and  the  abyss  of  Hades,  and  the  chaos  of  waters, 
says :  "  God  appointed  the  moon  to  rule  the  night,  and  to  wan- 
der through  the  night  until  the  dawn  of  day.  Every  month, 
without  fail,  God  made  holy  assembly  days.  In  the  beginning 
of  each  month,  at  the  rising  of  the  night,  the  moon  shot  forth 
its  horns  to  illuminate  the  heavens.  On  the  seventh  day  God 
appointed  a  holy  day,  and  commanded  to  cease  all  business." 
These  and  other  discoveries,  daily  made,  must  add  greatly  to 
our  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures,  and  tend  to  strengthen  our 
faith  in  the  accuracy  of  the  sacred  narrative. 

Some  scoffers  at  religion  have  greatly  amused  their  hearers 
by  pointing  out  what  they  term  the  "  Mistakes  of  Moses,"  and 
among  these  blunders  they  cite  the  ark  resting  on  Mount  Ara- 
rat, 17,000  feet  above  the  sea,  amid  eternal  snows.  It  is  only 
monkish  tradition  that  locates  the  landing  of  Noah  on  this 
mountain  in  Armenia.  There  is  nothing  in  the  Bible  to  war- 
rant any  such  notion.  The  name  Ararat  is  derived  from  the 
Babylonian  word  Urdu,  which  signifies  "  highland ; "  and  all 


584  APPENDIX. 

we  know  toiicbing  the  site  where  IS^oah  landed  is,  that  it  was 
somewhere  among  the  higlilands  east  of  the  Euphrates. 

Recent  explorations  in  Chaldaea  show  that  "  Ur  of  the  Chal- 
dees  " — the  city  of  Abraham — was  not  where  it  generally  was 
supposed  to  be,  at  Orfah,  in  I^orth-westem  Mesopotamia,  a 
comparatively  modern  city,  and  not  mentioned  on  the  tablets,' 
but  at  Mugheir,  in  lower  Babylonia,  west  of  the  Euphrates,  and 
near  the  head  of  the  Persian  Gulf.  If  Ur  was  in  Chaldaea, 
then  it  must  have  been  in  this  vicinity,  as  the  name  is  never 
applied  to  Mesopotamia  in  the  ancient  records. 

Extensive  ruins  have  been  discovered  here,  and  the  very 
name,  Hur  of  Khaldi,  in  Old  Armenian,  which  is  identical  with 
"  Ur  of  the  Chaldees  "  in  Hebrew,  has  been  found  here  on  the 
bricks  of  the  oldest  temple. 

Among  the  most  interesting  ruins  unearthed  is  the  old  temple 
of  the  Moon,  where  Abraham  probably  worshiped  before  his 
convei-sion.  In  the  foundations  of  this  temple  were  found.some 
of  the  oldest  inscribed  tablets  and  cyl- 
inders yet  discovered,  with  not  only  the 
name  of  the  city,  but  a  full  list  of  the 
kings  of  Ur,  dating  back  B.  C.  2230 
years,  among  them   Urukh,  the  first  cylinder  seaiT 

monumental  king,  and  Chedorlaomer,  whom  Abraham  defeated 
at  Dan,"  wonderfully  confirming  the  Scripture  account. 

But  the  most  curious  remains  found  here  are  the  tombs  that 
encircle  the  city  for  miles.  It  must  have  been  the  necropolis 
for  all  Chaldaea  for  many  centuries.  The  tombs  mostly  are 
brick  vaults,  drained  with  earthen  pipes,  and  containing  from 
three  to  eight  skeletons  each.  Those  not  in  vaults  are  buried 
*  George  Smith's  "  Genesis,"  p.  291.        «  Genesis  xiv,  15. 


TIE  OF  THE  CHALDEES.  585 

in  terra-cotta  coflBns,  piled  on  top  of  each  other,  thirty  and 
sixty  feet  deep.  Many  little  articles,  such  as  cups,  lamps, 
bracelets,  seals,  and  ornaments  of  different  kinds,  were  found 
^ith  the  dead.  Where  two  skeletons  were  in  the  same  grave, 
"they  were  always  male  and  female,  likely  man  and  wife. 

The  most  conspicuous  object  on  the  plain  of  Shinar,  about 
€even  miles  south-west  of  Hilleh,  modern  Babylon,  is  Birs-Nim- 
Toud,  or  citadel  of  Nimrod,  and  all  that  remains  of  the  famous 
Tower  of  Babel,  the  oldest  historic  monument  of  man.  In 
this  rich  valley  the  descendants  of  Noah  settled  soon  after  the 
:flood  ;  and,  as  a  bond  of  union,  commenced  building  a  city  and 
great  tower.  But,  as  this  was  contrary  to  the  divine  purpose 
of  replenishing  the  earth,  "  The  Lord  came  down  and  con- 
founded their  language."  "  So  they  were  scattered  abroad, 
■and  left  off  to  huild  the  cityP  *  This  is  the  only  intelUgent 
account  we  have  of  the  dispersion  of  the  nations  and  the  di- 
versity of  languages  spoken  in  the  world.  There  can  be  no 
-doubt  touching  the  identity  of  this  tower,  as  there  is  no  other 
«uch  ruin  on  all  the  plain.  The  Greeks  called  it  Borsippa,  or 
"  Tower  of  Tongues,"  only  another  name  for  Babel. 

After  lying  in  ruins  for  many  centuries,  it  was  rebuilt  by 
Kebuchadnezzar,  and  dedicated  to  Jupiter  Belus  ;  and  Herodo- 
tus describes  this  temple  as  situated  at  Borsippa,  seven  miles 
«outh-west  from  Babylon,  the  precise  location  of  Birs-Nimroud ; 
«o  there  can  be  no  doubt  about  the  temple  of  Belus  covering 
the  site  of  the  Tower  of  Babel. 

But  what  seems  very  curious,  in  further  proof  of  the  identifi- 
•cation  of  this  tower,  an  inscription  has  been  found  among  its 
ruins,  which,  as  M.  Oppert  says,  gives  Nebuchadnezzar's  own 

*  Genesis  xi,  8-11. 


686  APPENDIX. 

account  of  the  rebuilding  of  Babel.     As  a  specimen  of  their 
ancient  documents,  we  give  the  inscription  entire : 

"Nebuchadnezzar,  King  of  Babylon,  shepherd  of  peoples, 
who  attest  the  immutable  affection  of  Merodach,'  the  mighty 
ruler — exalting  Nebo ;  *  the  Saviour ;  the  wise  man,  who  lends 
his  ears  to  the  orders  of  the  highest  god ;  the  lieutenant  with- 
out reproach,  the  repairer  of  the  Pyramid  and  the  Tower, 
eldest  son  of -Nabopolassar,  King  of  Babylon.     We  say : — 

"Merodach,  the  great  master,  has  created  me;  he  has  im- 
posed on  me  to  reconstruct  his  building.  Nebo,  the  guardian 
over  the  legions  of  the  heaven  and  the  earth,  has  charged  my 
hands  with  the  scepter  of  justice. 

"  The  Pyramid  is  the  temple  of  the  heaven  and  the  earth, 
the  seat  of  Merodach  the  chief  of  the  gods,  the  place  of 
the  oracles,  the  spot  of  his  rest.  1  have  adorned  it  in  the  form 
of  a  cupola  with  shining  gold. 

"  The  Tower,  the  eternal  house,  which  I  founded  and  built, 
I  have  completed  its  magnificence  with  silver,  gold,  other 
metals,  stone,  enameled  bricks,  fir,  and  pine. 

"  The  first,  which  is  the  house  of  the  earth's  base,  thptnest 
ancient  monument  of  Babylon,  I  built  and  finished  it ;  I  have 
highly  exalted  its  head  with  bricks  covered  with  copper. 

"  "We  say  for  the  other,  that  is,  this  edifice,  tlie  House  of 
the  Seven  Lights  of  the  Earth,  the  most  ancient  monument  of 
Borsippa  ; — a  former  king  built  it,  but  he  did  not  complete 
its  head.  Since  a  remote  time  people  had  abandoned  it,  lolth- 
out  order  expressing  their  words.  Since  that  time  the  earth- 
quake and  tiie  thunder  had  dispersed  its  sun-dried  clay;  the 

'  The  supreme  deity  of  Babylon. 

*The  patron  of  learning,  or  genius  of  inspiration. 


TEMPLE  OF  BELUS TOWER  OF  BABEL.  587 

bricks  of  the  casing  had  been  split ;  and  the  earth  of  the  in- 
terior had  been  scattered  in  heaps.  Merodach,  the  great  lord, 
excited  my  mind  to  repair  this  building.  I  did  not  change  the 
site,  nor  did  I  take  away  the  foundation  stone.  In  a  fortu- 
nate month,  an  auspicious  day,  I  undertook  to  build  porticoes 
around  the  crude  brick  masses  and  the  casing  of  burnt  bricks. 
I  put  the  inscription  of  my  name  in  the  porticoes,  I  set  my 
hand  to  finish  it,  and  to  exalt  its  head.  As  it  had  been  in 
former  times,  so  I  founded,  I  made  it;  as  it  had  been  in 
ancient  days,  so  I  exalted  its  summit. 

"  Nebo,  son  of  himself,  ruler  who  exaltest  Merodach,  be  pro- 
pitious to  my  works,  to  maintain  my  authority.  Grant  me  a 
life  until  the  remotest  time,  a  sevenfold  progeny,  the  stability 
of  my  throne,  the  victory  of  my  sword,  the  pacification  of  my 
foes,  the  triumph  over  the  lands !  In  the  columns  of  thy 
eternal  table,  that  fix  the  destinies  of  the  heaven  and  earth, 
bless  the  course  of  my  days,  inscribe  the  fecundity  of  ray 
race. 

"  Imitate,  O  Merodach,  King  of  heaven  and  earth,  the  fa- 
ther who  begot  thee ;  bless  my  buildings,  strengthen  my  author- 
ity. May  Nebuchadnezzar,  the  King  repairer,  remain  before 
thy  face." 

This  inscription  very  clearly  shows  that  the  ruins  of  Birs- 
Nimroud  are  on  the  original  foundation  of  the  Tower  of 
Babel. 

The  temple  of  Belus  was  in  the  form  of  a  pyramid,  stand- 
ing on  a  platform  of  crude  bricks  six  hundred  feet  square, 
and  seventy-five  feet  high.  Rising  from  this  platform,  cased 
witli  enameled  bricks  in  different  colors,  or  overlaid  with  plates 


588 


APPENDIX. 


of  gold  or  silver,  were  seven  stages,  the  lower  one  two  hun- 
dred and  seventj-two  feet  square,  and  twenty-six  high ;  the 
next  two  hundred  and  thirty  feet  square  by  twenty-six  high  ; 
and  thus  diminishing  as  they  ascended.  On  the  summit  was 
the  chapel,  or  golden  cupola,  that  contained,  with  many  other 
images,  the  great  golden  statue  of  Belus,  forty  feet  high.  The 
seven  stages  represented  the  seven  lights  or  planets  of 
Earth,    hence    it    was     known     as    the    "  Temple    of    the 


BIRS  NIMROUD. 


Seven  Spheres."  The  interior  was  cased  with  glazed  hard- 
burned  brick  of  various  colors ;  the  ceilings  were  of  carved 
black-wood  from  India,  supported  by  mosaic  columns,  and  the 
gates  of  the  finest  brass  or  bronze.  These  gates,  according  to 
Josephus,  were  made  out  of  the  two  bronze  pillars,  Boaz  and 
Jachin,  that  once  stood  at  the  entrance  to  Solomon's  temple, 
and  which  Kebuchadnezzar  carried  away  from  Jeruslem.* 
This  was  the  royal  residence  of  the  kings  of  Babylon.     It 

'  2  Kings  XXV,  13. 


BIRS-NIMROUD TOWER  OF  BABEL.  589 

was  here  Nabonidus  was  taken  prisoner  by  Cyrus,  and  it  was 
in  the  courts  of  this  temple  that  his  father  before  him  ate  grass 
like  an  ox.  It  was  also  the  royal  treasury,  where  the  golden 
vessels  taken  from  the  house  of  the  Lord  at  Jerusalem,'  were 
deposited,  and  all  the  wealth  of  the  nation  kept,  which  must 
have  been  vast,  as  Xerxes,  on  his  return  from  his  disastrous  cam- 
paign in  Europe,  robbed  this  temj^le  of  $600,000,000  in  gold. 

All  that  remains  of  this  celebrated  temple  is  an  immense 
mound  of  sun-dried  bricks,  laid  with  bitumen ; '  a  truncated  cone 
two  hundred  and  fifty  feet  high,  broken  off  abruptly  and  rent 
asunder.  The  sides  of  the  mound  are  deeply  furrowed  by  the 
storms,  and  the  whole  ruinous  heap  scathed  as  if  by  lightning. 
Mr,  Rassam  thinks  it  was  destroyed  by  volcanic  eruption,  which 
at  least  seems  probable,  as  the  brick  and  pottery  lying  around 
in  masses  have  been  fused  and  vitrified  by  some  intense  heat. 

Among  the  most  interesting  ruins  of  the  class  we  are  con- 
sidering, to  be  found  in  Europe,  are  Pompeii  and  Hercula- 
neum,  two  Roman  cities  destroyed  by  an  eruption  of  Vesuvius 
A.  D.  T9.  Herculaneum  was  buried  beneath  a  torrent  of 
metallic  lava  so  hard  and  thick  as  to  defy  removal,  so  that 
most  of  the  city  remains  still  entombed,  and  a  modern  city  of 
twenty  thousand  inhabitants  has  grown  up  over  the  site  of 
long-buried  Herculaneum.  Pompeii,  a  few  miles  to  the  east, 
was  destroyed  by  a  shower  of  hot  ashes  and  pumice  that  fell 
like  a  great  snow-storm  upon  the  place,  burying  it  to  the  depth 
of  from  ten  to  seventy  feet,  so  that  its  very  site  was  unknown 
for  more  than  seventeen  hundred  years,  and  only  discovered 
lately  by  a  mere  accident.     Since  then  the  governments  of 

'  2  Chronicles  xxxvi,  7. 

*  "Tliey  had  brick  for  stone,  and  slime  (or  bitumen)  for  mortar."  Genesis  xi,  3. 


590  APPENDIX. 

Europe  have  been  at  work  clearing  away  this  great  deposit  of 
ashes  and  lava,  and  now  you  can  stroll  for  hours  and  days 
through  the  deserted  streets  and  dwellings  of  this  once  popu- 
lous city.  The  streets  are  nicely  paved,  with  sidewalks  and 
stepping-stones  at  the  crossings.  On  some  of  the  houses  may 
still  be  seen  the  names  of  their  old  occupants,  others  were  la- 
beled "  To  Let,"  but  have  been  without  a  tenant  for  more 
than  eighteen  hundred  years.  In  the  Forum  there  was  a  call 
for  a  political  meeting  that  night,  but  it  stands  forever  ad- 
journed. The  houses  usually  face  an  open  court,  in  some  of 
which  were  fountains,  statues,  and  vases  for  flowers.  Others 
were  paved  in  mosaic  of  beautiful  designs — one  a  battle  scene, 
Alexander  in  the  battle  of  the  Granicus,  and  here  you  may 
see  the  war-chariot  and  prancing  steeds,  and  mailed  warriors  in 
all  the  heat  of  battle,  true  as  life,  and  almost  as  large  as  life. 
As  a  work  of  art  this  has  never  been  surpassed.  You  can  enter 
these  houses,  go  up-stairs  and  down-stairs,  into  their  recep- 
tion-rooms, dining-rooms  and  sleeping  apartments.  Some  of 
them  were  elegantly  furnished  with  bronze  tables,  statues, 
bedsteads,  lamps,  and  many  other  articles.  In  some  instances 
the  walls  were  richly  frescoed,  the  coloring  still  bright,  and  of 
exquisite  workmanship  and  design. 

In  strolling  through  these  streets  you  are  impressed  with 
the  melancholy  silence  of  the  place  ;  and  this  profound  soli- 
tude awakens  in  the  heart  feelings  of  the  greatest  awe.  The 
houses  stand  in  unbroken  blocks,  with  doors  and  windows  all 
open,  and  you  are  constantly  wondering  what  has  become  of 
the  people,  and  why  they  don't  come  out  to  salute  you.  Of 
the  inhabitants,  many  doubtless  escaped  when  they  saw  the 
storm  gathering,  though  thousands  must  have  perished.     In 


BURIED  CITY   OF  P03IPE1L  591 

one  street  a  woman  and  three  children  were  dug  up,  perhaps 
a  mother  and  her  family ;  the  mother  might  have  es- 
caped, but  she  was  trying  to  save  her  little  ones,  and  they 
were  all  buried  together.  In  another  place  a  young  man  and 
woman  were  found  in  each  others  arms,  probably  lovers,  at- 
tempting to  escape  together,  but  death  overtook  them,  and 
wedded  them  just  there.  An  old  miser  was  found  near  his 
treasure-chests,  still  grasj>ing  in  his  bony  hand  a  purse  of  gold. 

Another  man  was  found  sitting  at  his  table  writing  his  will. 
Heaven  willed  it  otherwise.  In  one  saloon  the  drinking  gob- 
lets were  still  on  the  counter  and  the  money  lying  untouched 
on  the  marble  slab.  In  another,  the  table  was  spread  as  for 
dinner,  but  the  guests  had  all  fled,  leaving  every  thing  behind 
them,  loaves  of  bread  still  in  the  oven,  honey  still  in  the  comb, 
wine  still  in  the  bottle,  and  in  the  stone  sink  the  cloth  was  still 
lying  just  as  the  servant  had  left  it  after  drying  the  dislies, 
eighteen  centuries  before.  In  the  house  of  one  Dimond  seven- 
teen young  ladies  were  found,  dressed  as  for  some  festive  oc- 
casion, one  with  her  hand  and  handkerchief  to  her  face,  as  if 
weeping  at  the  moment  of  her  death ;  another  had  fallen  on 
the  floor,  and  the  impression  of  her  bust  could  still  be  seen  in 
the  cold  lava.  In  the  Herculaneum  gate  the  sentinel  was  found 
in  his  box  holding  with  his  left  hand  his  tunic  to  his  mouth, 
and  with  his  right  hand  still  grasping  an  old  rusty  sword. 

A  woman  and  a  little  boy  about  ten  years  old  were  recovered 
in  a  naiTow  street,  more  than  likely  a  mother  and  her  son,  as 
she  was  clasping  the  child  to  her  bosom,  whose  body  was  very 
much  emaciated,  leading  to  the  supjDosition  that  the  child  was 
very  ill  at  the  time  of  the  catastrophe.  The  woman  appeared 
to  be  a  person  of  wealth ;  on  one  arm  she  wore  two  gold  brace- 


592  APPENDIX. 

lets,  aiid  on  her  lingers  several  rings,  one  set  with  an  amethyst, 
on  which  was  engraved  the  head  of  Mercury. 

In  one  of  the  prisons  sixty-two  skeletons  were  exhumed, 
their  feet  still  in  the  stocks,  and  rusty  manacles  on  their  arms. 
Also,  in  the  amphitheater,  a  large  number  were  recovered, 
some  in  their  private  boxes,  others  in  the  galleries,  just  as  they 
were  suffocated  by  the  sulphurous  fumes  when  witnessing  the 
tragical  scene  enacted  on  that  occasion.  And  in  the  temples  of 
Jupiter  and  their  other  gods  many  were  found  around  the 
altars,  just  as  they  perished,  vainly  imploring  these  their  deities 
to  protect  them  from  that  terrible  storm  of  fire  and  of  brim- 
stone. And  so  all  over  the  city  you  can  still  see  the  footsteps 
of  the  destroyer,  and  how  sudden  and  fearful  was  the  over- 
throw of  Pompeii.  It  was  during  this  eruption  the  elder 
Pliny  lost  his  life,  a  graphic  description  of  which  is  given  by 
the  younger  Pliny,  who  was  an  eye-witness  of  the  scene. 

It  is  worthy  of  observation  that  in  all  this  opulent  Roman 
city,  where  so  much  culture  and  wealth  are  displayed,  there  i& 
no  trace  of  any  institution  for  the  relief  of  suffering  humanity  ; 
showing  how  far  superior  our  Christianity  is  to  the  cold 
philosophy  of  paganism.  We  here  find  grand  temples  for 
their  idols,  magnificent  tombs  for  their  dead,  great  theaters  for 
their  amusement,  and  barracks  for  their  soldiers ;  but  nowhere- 
a  hospital  or  asylum  for  their  sick  and  dying.  Only  Chris- 
tianity makes  provision  for  such. 

Equally  important  discoveries  have  been  made  recently  at 
Mycenae,  in  the  peninsula  of  Greece.  Dr.  Henry  Schliemann 
has  here  found  the  old  capital  of  Argos  and  home  of  Aga- 
memnon, "  King  of  Men  ;  "  found  the  Acropolis  surrounded 
with  its  Cyclopean  walls,  sixteen  feet  thick ;  found  the  famous 


RECOVERY  OF  MYCEX^  A^'D  TROY.  593 

"  Gate  of  Lions  "  leading  to  the  citadel,  and  within  the  citadel 
the  old  council-chamber;  and  down  thirty  feet  beneath  its 
marble  floor  found  the  treasury  and  tomb  of  Atreus,  also,  the 
supposed  remains  of  Agamemnon  sleeping  in  his  golden  armor, 
surrounded  by  his  warriors,  all  clad  in  gold,  their  helmets  of  solid 
gold,  masks  of  gold  over  their  faces,  gold  stars  and  buttons  and 
foliage  on  their  dresses,  some  wearing  gold  rings  and  bracelets 
and  diadems,  others  with  breastplates  of  massive  gold,  and 
drinking  goblets,  even  the  scabbards  of  their  swords  gold. 
Such  a  profusion  of  gold  was  never  before  found  on  human 
remains.  This  city  was  destroyed  by  the  Argives,  B.  C.  468, 
and  until  now  was  considered  lost  beyond  recovery. 

And  this  same  indefatigable  archaeologist  has  lately  found 
the  long  buried  city  of  Troy.  So  many  centuries  had  elapsed 
since  the  fall  of  Troy,  and  as  no  trace  of  the  place  remained 
above  ground,  many  began  to  doubt  whether  such  a  city  ever 
existed,  or  such  a  poet  as  Homer  ever  lived,  or  wrote  the 
"Iliad." 

Dr.  Schliemann  commenced  his  excavations  on  the  plain  of 
Troy,  at  Hissarlik,  a  few  miles  south  of  the  Hellespont  in 
1870.  I  met  him  there  the  following  spring,  still  hard  at  work, 
for  which  he  has  been  amply  rewarded  ;  having  recovered  be- 
yond question  the  old  city  of  the  Trojans.  Being  fully  con- 
vinced that  the  hill  Hissarlik  was  the  acropolis  of  long  lost 
Ilium,  he  began  digging,  and  at  a  depth  of  six  or  eight  feet 
came  upon  the  remains  of  a  city,  but  it  was  not  classic  Troy. 
The  coins,  inscriptions,  and  other  articles  found  indicated  that 
it  belonged  to  the  Eoman  period,  about  the  third  century  of 
the  Christian  era. 

He  continued  digging,  and  at  a  depth  of  about  twenty  feet 


594  APPENDIX. 

came  upon  a  second  city,  but  it  was  not  ancient  Troy.  It  be- 
longed to  the  stone  age,  perhaps  the  fourth  century  before 
Christ.  Stone  idols,  axes,  hammers,  hand-mills,  mortars,  pes- 
tles, lance-blades,  sling-sliot,  every  thing  stone.  Digging 
through  this  second  city  he  came  at  a  depth  of  thirty  feet  to  a 
third  city,  to  historic,  renowned  Troy.  Every  thing  indicated 
a  high  degree  of  civilization.  There  were  the  paved  streets, 
the  massive  walls  of  dressed  stone,  the  well-built  brick  houses, 
the  ponderous  gate-way,  and  in  front  of  it  heaps  of  human 
skeletons,  some  in  their  bronze  annor,  with  bronze  shields, 
battle-axes,  spears,  and  other  weapons ;  probably  the  soldiers 
who  fell  in  defense  of  their  citadel,  when  the  Greeks  made 
their  last  successful  charge.  Within  the  city  he  found  the 
supposed  palace  of  Priam,  and  under  its  crumbling  walls  the 
old  king's  treasure  chests  filled  with  different  articles  in  pure 
gold,  such  as  goblets  and  vases,  flagons  weighing  nearly  two 
pounds  each,  golden  diadems,  coronets,  bracelets,  chains,  rings, 
in  all  eight  thousand  seven  hundred  and  fifty  articles  in  solid  gold. 

Through  these  streets,  probably,  brave  Hector  walked.  Here 
Paris  lived,  and  some  of  these  may  be  the  very  ornaments  once 
worn  by  the  beautiful  Helen.  The  houses  appear  to  have  been 
built  first  with  large  sun-dried  bricks,  then,  after  the  walls 
were  up,  the  bricks  were  burned  hard  by  means  of  great  wood 
fires  kindled  against  them  within  and  without.  The  floors 
were  made  in  the  same  way,  first  covered  with  soft  clay,  and 
after  drying,  burned  hard.  • 

But  for  a  full  description  of  these  remarkable  ruins  we  refer 
the  reader  to  the  doctor's  "  Ilios." 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  this  was  the  ancient  city  whose 
renown  was  sung  by  Homer.     These  excavations  reveal  a  civil- 


CBEATION  TABLET. 


Note. — These  tablets  of  the  creation,  found  among  the  ruins  of  Nineveh, 
are  made  of  common  potter's  clay,  covered  with  inscriptions  in  cuneiform 
characters,  giving  many  important  facts  connected  with  the  history  of  our  world, 
and  agieeing  wonderfully  with  the  inspired  record.  They  were  written  oa 
while  the  clay  was  yet  soft,  and  thea  burnt  hard  in  the  kiln. 

S8 


EXPLORATIONS  E^  ASSYRIA.  597 

ization  that  must  antedate  the  present  era  at  least  fifteen 
hundred  years;  and  yet,  in  digging  still  deeper  Schliemann 
passed  through  the  rubbish  and  ashes  of  two  other  prehistoric 
cities  that  had  been  consumed  by  fire,  and  at  a  depth  of  fifty 
feet  below  the  surface  came  upon  a  sixth  city,  dating  back  not 
less  than  two  thousand  years  before  Christ.  So  here  were 
found  six  cities,  one  above  another,  all  buried  on  the  classic 
plains  of  Troy. 

We  conclude  our  explorations  with  one  of  the  latest  and 
most  wonderful  discoveries  of  the  century. 

Berosus,  a  Chaldean  priest  of  Babylon,  in  the  third  century 
before  Christ,  compiled  from  the  records  in  the  temple  of 
Belus  a  history  of  Babylonia,  giving  what  has  long  been  known 
as  "  The  Chaldean  account  of  the  Flood."  Many,  however, 
looked  upon  the  whole  account  as  mythical,  and  treated  the 
matter  as  a  mere  legend. 

Layard,  in  his  explorations  among  the  ruins  of  Nineveh, 
came  upon  the  grand  palace  of  Asshur-bani-pal,  the  Sardana- 
palus  of  history,  and  connected  with  the  palace  found  the 
"  Royal  Library ''  of  the  old  Assyrian  kings,  written  in  the 
wedge-character,  on  clay  tiles  and  cylinders,  some  dating  back 
very  near  the  flood.  Thousands  of  these  inscribed  tablets 
were  found,  containing  the  names  of  their  deities,  chronological 
tables  of  their  kings,  astronomical  observations,  legal  docu- 
ments, such  as  deeds,  leases  and  bills  of  sale,  royal  decrees, 
bearing  the  king's  seal ;  even  promissory  notes,  drawing  three 
and  four  per  cent,  interest,  secured  by  mortgage  on  real  estate 
with  the  names  of  the  parties  and  witnesses  affixed;  and, 
strangely  enough,  those  who  could  not  write  made  their  mark 
in  the  plastic  clay,  very  much  as  such  documents  are  signed 


598  APPENDIX. 

at  the  present  day  ;  with  many  other  records  equally  curious, 
on  all  subjects. 

,  These  discoveries  awakened  such  an  interest  in  Europe,  the 
late  lamented  George  Smith  was  at  once  sent  out  by  the  British 
Museum  to  make  further  explorations,  and  he  soon  found 
among  the  rubbish  of  ages  copies  of  the  original  tablets  of  the 
creation  and  deluge,  which  Berosus  had  translated  into  Greek 
more  than  two  thousand  years  before. 

These  records  are  now  in  the  British  Museum,  but  as  many 
have  not  the  privilege  of  seeing  them  we  give  a  brief  extract 
of  those  relating  to  the  Flood. 

"God  (Kronos)  appeared  to  Xisuthrus  (Koah)  in  a  vision, 
and  warned  him  that  on  the  fifteenth  day  of  the  month 
Daesius  mankind  would  be  destroyed  by  a  deluge.  He  there- 
fore directed  him  to  write  a  history  of  the  beginning,  course, 
and  end  of  all  things,  and  to  hury  it  in  Sippara,  the  city  of 
ihe  sun,  and  to  build  a  vessel,  and  take  with  him  into  it  his 
friends  and  relatives,  and  put  on  board  food  and  drink,  together 
with  different  animals,  birds  and  quadrupeds,  and  when  all 
was  ready  to  commit  himself  to  the  deep." 

Also,  an  account  of  the  creation  of  the  world,  the  origin  of 
evil,  and  the  expulsion  of  Lucifer  or  the  Dragon  out  of  heaven. 
There  is  a  striking  agreement  between  these  stone  records  and 
the  Mosaic  account.  They  both,  in  creation,  represent  "  the 
earth  without  form,  and  void,"  and  state  that  "  darkness  was 
on  the  face  of  the  deep."  In  both  "  man  is  formed  out  of .  the 
dust  of  the  ground,"  and  after  the  animals  were  created ;  and 
in  both  he  falls  under  strong  temptation,  is  expelled  from 
the  garden  of  Eden,  and  the  deluge  is  sent  as  a  divine  punish- 
ment for  sin. 


THE   DELUGE    TABLETS. 


599 


Now,  what  seems  most  marvelous,  Mr.  Kassam  has  just  found 
at  Balawat,  in  the  Euphrates  Valley,  the  antediluvian  city  of 
Sippara,  the  oldest  in  the  world,  so  far  as  known  ;  has  also 
found  the  old  temple  of  the  sun-god,  and  beneath  its  altar,  in 
a  stone  cist,  or  terra-cotta  chest,  the  original  records  said  to 
have  been  buried  there  by  Noah  himself,  giving  us  the  histoiy 
of  the  beginning,  progress  and  end  of  all  things  antediluvian, 
fully  identifying  this  city  and  temple,  and  carrying  us  back  in 
our  researches  beyond  the  Flood. 


GENERAL  INDEX. 


PAGE 

Aaron's  Tomb,  Mount  Hor, .  .106,  311 

Abarim  Mountains 348 

Aboo  Simbel,  Rock-hewn  Temple,    88 
Abraham  goes  down  to  Egypt ....     23 

Abraham's  Offering  of  Lsaac 155 

Achor,  Valley  of 281 

Acre,  Ancient  Accho 237 

Adonis,  River  of 441 

AduUam,  Cave  of 205-208 

Adummim,  Going  up  to 279 

Adventures  in  Asia  Minor 460 

Adwan  Arabs,  Ali  Diab 350 

Agamemnon's  Tomb 593 

Agnostic  Age 571 

Agrippa's  Wall 168 

Ahab  on  Mount  Carmel 252 

Ahasuerus,  Xerxes  of  History 418 

Akabah,  Gulf  of 101 

Alexander  the  Great 33,  503-508 

Alexandria,  Burning  of 556 

Alexandria,  Ancient  City 33 

Alexandria,  Modern  City 36 

American  Eagle 437 

American  Mission,  Beirut 443 

Amos,  the  Prophet 210 

Amphitheater,  Ephesus 444 

Anakim,  Powerful  Race 213,  227 

Ancient  Graves,  Ur 584 

Antioch,  Taken  by  Crusaders 528 

Antiquity  of  Egypt 538 

Apis,  Incarnation  of  Osiris 57 

Apocalypse,  St.  John 476 

Apples  of  Sodom 296 

Aqueducts  of  Solomon 203 

Arabi  Bey. 556 


Arabs  Eating 352 

Arab  Tribes  East  of  Jordan  316, 325, 368 

Arak  el  Emir 356 

Aram-Xaharim 401 

Aram,  Syria  . . 401 

Ararat,  Mount 683 

Arch,  Ecce  Homo 134 

Arch,  Found  in  Egypt 73 

Argob,  tl. J  Lgah 394 

Argos,  Old  Capital  of 592 

Arguments  in  Support  of  Bible. . .  139 

Ark  of  the  Covenant 154 

Armageddon,  Battle  of 518 

Arminian  and  Greek  Churches. . .  117 

Ash-beds  of  Israelites'  Camp-fires .  576 

Ashdod,  Taken  by  Egyptians 229 

Ashmunazer's  Tomb,  Sidon 448 

Asia  Minor,  Ancient  Anatolia. . . .  457 

:  Askelon,  Syrian  Venus 238 

j  Asshur,  Son  of  Shem 404 

j  Assouan,, Frontier  of  Egypt 81 

Assyrian  Discoveries 404 

Athens,  Description  of 497 

Athlit,  Grand  Ruins 234 

Baalbec,  Grand  Ruins 434 

Baalbec,  Great  Stones 437 

Baal,  High  Places  of 342 

Baal,  Image  of 386 

Baal,  Priests  Slaughtered 248 

Baal-Zephon 93 

Babel,  Tower  of 585 

Babel,  Tower  of,  Birs-Nimrud. . . .  416 

Babylon,  Capital  of  Chaldaea.  .404,  415 

Babylonian  Empire 503 

(601) 


602 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


PAOB 

Backsheesh 37 

Barsippa,  Tongue  Tower 585 

Bartlett,  Dr.  S.  C 576 

Bartirueus  Receives  his  Sight 281 

Bashan,  History  of 367,  368 

Battle  of  Tel-el-Kebir 558 

Bedouin  Arabs 554,  561 

Bedouins  of  the  Ghor 296 

Beelzebub,  Inaage  of 425 

Beer-Sheba 221 

Beirut 442 

Belka,  Land  beyond  Jordan 317 

Belshazzar's  Palace 416 

Belus  River,  Discov.ery  of  Glass . .  238 

Belus,  Temple  of 585 

Belzoni's  Tombs 538 

Berosus,  Priest  of  Belus 597 

Bethany,  Home  of  Mary 133,  278 

Bethel,  Curious  Legend 256 

Bethel,  House  of  God 255 

Bethel,  Royal  City  of  Jeroboam . .  258 
Bethlehem,  Christmas  Ceremonies  195 
Bethlehem,  Church  of  Nativity  193, 195 
Bethlehem,  Grotto  of  St.  Jerome. .  196 

Bethlehem,  Inn  of 191,  194 

Beth-peor,  Grave  of  Moses 346 

Beth-peor,  Wady  Musa 346 

Bible  Statements  Confirmed 142 

Bible,  First  Translated 34 

Bible,  On  Egyptian  Monuments.  .     24 

Birs-Nimroud ...   589 

Bishop  Gobat,  of  Jerusalem   116 

Black  Obelisk 411 

Bloody  Way 279 

Boaz  and  Jachin,  Pillars  of 588 

Botta,  French  Consul,  Mosul 408 

Bozrah,  Ruins  of 377 

Bozrah,  Solemn  Reflections 378 

Brick,  Egyptian 73 

Bridge,  Over  the  Jordan 364 

Bridge,  Robinson's 151 

British  in  Egypt 515,  558 

Burial,  Mode  of 175 

Burning  Bush 311 


PA«1 

Burning  Furnace bSO 

Csesarea  Palestina 233 

Caesarea  Philippi,  Banias 272 

Cairo,  Capital  of  Egypt 550 

Caliph  Mahraoud 47 

Calirrhoe,  Hot  Springs 330 

Camels  of  the  Desert 96 

Canaan,  Character  of  Country ....   113 

Canaan,  Grandson  of  Noah Ill 

Canaanites,  Settle  Palestine. .  110,  225 

Cana  of  Galilee 262 

Capernaum,  Khi\n  Minyeh 264 

Carmelite  Monks.  . .    245 

Carmel,  Mount 244 

Carob-tree,  Locu.st  and  Husk 199 

Castle  of  Zion,  Tower  of  David . . .  175 

Cataracts  of  Nile 82 

Cedars  of  Lebanon 439 

Center  of  the  World 183 

Cesnola,  General,  U.  S.  Consul...  .   417 

Champollion,  Egyptologist 29 

Cheops,  Builder  of  Great  Pyramid     45 

Cherith,  Brook. " 281 

Children's  Crusade 533 

Christianity,   Planted  in  Alexan- 
dria      35 

Chronology,  Harmonized 26 

Chrysostom,  Golden-mouthed. 458,  473 

Church  of  Holy  Sepulcher 160 

Church  of  the  Empress  Helena. . .  193 

Church  of  the  Nativity 193 

Citadel  of  Cairo 550 

City  of  the  Great  King 123 

Cleopatra's  Needle 33,  465,  545 

Coenaculura,  Last  Supper 177 

Coins,  Ancient  Jewish 312 

Colossi,  Amunoph  IH 76 

Conquest  of  Egypt,  B.  C.  572 549 

Constantine's  Basilica 160,  165 

Constantinople,  Sublime  Porte... .  469 

Consuls,  Duties  of 116 

Convent  of  Mar  Elyas,  Carmel. . . .  245 
Convent  of  St.  Catherine 99 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


60^ 


PASX 

(>)nvent  of  St.  John 197 

Council  of  Clermont 523 

Croesus,  Last  King  of  Sardis 487 

Creation  Tablets,  Chaldean. .  .595,  598 
Crucifixion,  Solemn  Mockeries. .  .   185 

Crusades 521 

Cyprus,  Island  of 417 

Cyril,  Bishop  of  Jerusalem. .  .166,  176 
Cyrus  the  Persian  508 

Damascus  Gate,  Jerusalem 254 

Dama,scus,  Great  Mcsque 432 

Damascus,  Oldest  City  in  the  World  431 

Daniel's  Vision 507 

Daniel,  Tomb  of. 419 

Darius  the  Mede 578 

David  Cuts  off  Saul's  Kobe 209 

David  in  Cave  of  Adullam 205 

David,  Tomb  of 178 

Dayr  el  Bahree,  Late  Discoveries.  538 

Dead  Sea,  Great  Depression 294 

Dead  Sea,  Remarkable  Phenome- 
non    302 

Delilah,  Betrays  Samson 228 

Deluge  Tablets 598 

Dervishes,  Howling  and  Dancing.  471 

Desert  of  Arabia 380 

Diana,  Temple  at  Ephesus  . .  .478,  575 
Dibon,  Ancient  Capital  of  Moab.  .   339 

Dogs,  Dogmatic 37 

Dome  over  Holy  Sepulcher. .  .170,  431 

Donkeys  of  Alexandria 37 

Dragon  Cast  out  of  Heaven 414 

Dream  of  Nebuchadnezzar 502 

Dromedary  Riding 96,  271 

Druses,  a  Peculiar  People 395 

Easter  Festivities 183 

Ebenezer,  Stones  of  Witness 311 

Ecce  Homo,  Arch 134 

Ed  Deir,  The  Convent,  Petra 196 

Edrei,  Ancient  Capital  of  Bashan.  396 

Egyptian  Mode  of  Burial 543 

Egyptian  Sculpture 24,  25,  58,  72 


PAOX; 

Egyptian  Soldiers 555 

Egypt,  Population  of 554 

Egypt's  Future 558 

Ekron,  Worship  of  Beelzebub 228 

Elijah's  Grotto,  Mt.  Carmel 246 

Elijah's  Sacrifice,  Site  of 247 

Elisha  at  Dothan 262- 

Elisha,  Mocked  by  Children 257 

Elisha  Plowing 334 

EI  Kuzneh,  Petra 105 

El  Mahdi,  Moslem  Messiah 566 

Embalmed  Apis  542 

Embalming  the  Dead 542 

Emmaus 123 

Engedi,  Wilderness  of 30^ 

Ephesus,  Ruins  of. 479 

ErRahah,  Plain  of 9» 

Esdraelon,  Plain  of 247,  262 

Eshcol,  Valley  and  Grapes 214 

Esther,  Queen 418 

Ethiopia,  Nubia 83 

Evangelist,  Derivation  of  Name.  .  445 
Exodus,  Departure  from  Egypt..  .     90 

Exodus,  Pharaoh  of 54 

Explorations,  Assyrian 597 

Ezion-Geber 101 

Feet- washing  Ceremony 184 

Fellaheen  Arabs 555 

Firman  of  Sultan 461 

First-born,  Cut  off 56 

Fishing  in  Wady  Waleh 334 

Flag  of  the  Prophet 514 

Flint  Knives 284 

Flood  of  Noah 598 

Fountain  of  Elisha,  Jericho 287 

Frederick  Barbarossa,  Red-Beard.  243 

Frescoes,  Ancient 290 

Fulfillment  of  Prophecy.  .89,  229,  243, 

303 

Gadara 363 

Ganneau,  M.  Clermont 340 

Gates  of  Bronze,  Nineveh 410 


604 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


PAGE 

Chite-way  of  Sik,  Petra 105 

Gath,  City  of  Goliath 232,  236 

Gaza,  Samson's  Death 227 

Geological  Formation,  Jordan  Val- 
ley   302 

Gerizim  and  Ebal,  Mounts 261 

German  Colony,  Haifa 235 

Gethsemane  and  Olivet 138,  278 

IGiant  Cities  of  Baahan 370 

'Giant  Races 366 

Gibeah  of  Benjamin 255 

■Gilead,  Balm 364 

Gilead,  Land  of 350 

■Gilgal,  Plain  of 283 

■Glass,  Ancient  Specimens 463 

•Goat,  with  Notable  Horn 508 

Godfrey  of  Bouillon 526 

•Gog  and  Magog 518 

Golden  Gate  Temple 146 

"Golden  Image  of  Belus. .    588 

Golden  Ornaments  Found 594 

■Golgotha,  Adam's  Skull 168 

Gordon,  General 569 

■Granaries,  Egyptian 573 

Granite  Quarries  of  Syene 81 

•Great  Sea,  Under  Temple  Platform  147 

Grecian  Empire 503,  509 

"Gulf  of  Suez 91 

Hadrian,  Emperor 164 

IHadrian,  Head  of 427 

Hadrian,  Tomb  of 428 

Haggai's  Seal 154 

IHanging  Gardens  of  Babylon 416 

Haran,  City  of  Nahor  401 

Hattin,  Battle  of 263,  323 

Hauran,  Journey  Through 373 

Hebrews  Making  Brick,  Egypt.. .     25 

Hebron,  Ancient  Arba 213 

Helena,  Empress 164,  193,  522 

Heliopolis,  Grand  Temple 43 

Heliopolis,  Obelisk 43 

Heliopolis,  On  of  Scripture 42 

Hermon,  Mount,  Snow  Storm ....  275 


PAOI 

Herod,  the  Great 178,  211,  289 

Herodias  and  Herod  Antipas 327 

Herodium,  Tomb  of  Herod  .  ..178,  354 

Heshbon,  Fish  Pools 319 

Hezekiah,  King  of  Judah 409 

Hicks  Pasha,  Defeat 567 

Hieroglyphics,  Egyptian 28 

Hill  Country  of  Judea. 197 

Hippicus,  Tower  of 169 

Hiram,  King  of  Tyre,  Tomb 241 

Holy  Family,  Flight  into  Egypt. .     23 

Holy  Fire,  Wild  Fanaticism 187 

Holy  Lance,  Legend  of 529 

Holy  of  Holies,  Temple  of  Karnak     65 

Homeward  Bound 499 

Hyksos  or  Shepherds 225 

Hyrcanus  I.,  Robs  David's  Tomb  178, 

354 

Idols  of  the  Egyptians 30 

Ignatius,  Bishop  of  Antioch 457 

Inscribed  Cylinders,  Assyrian.414,  584 

Inscribed  Rocks 100 

Inscribed  Tablets  of  Deluge 412 

Inscription  on  Sarcophagus 449 

Inscriptions,  Ancient 586 

Inscriptions,  Moabite 419 

Inscriptions,  Old  Hebrew 422 

Invention  of  Cross 522 

Ishmaelites  and  Arabs 554 

Islamism,  Overthrow  of 515 

Island  of  Philffi,  Nile 85 

Israel,  Land  of - .  110 

Jacob,  at  Bethel 255 

Jacob  Meets  Rachel 403 

Jacob's  Name  Changed  to  Israel . .  109 

Jacob  Settles  in  Egypt 23 

Jacob,  Well  of 258 

Jaffa,  Ancient  Joppa 119 

Jaffa,  Difficulty  of  Landing 120 

Jaffa,  Oldest  Sea-port 119 

Jaffa,  Population  and  History.  . . .   120 
Jaffa,  Up  to  Jerusalem 122 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


605 


PAQS 

Jebel  Hauran 368 

Jebel  Usdum,  Mountain  of  Sodom  297 

Jephtha's  Vow 352 

Jerash,  Mahanaim 362 

Jericho,  Down  to 278 

Jericho,  House  of  Zaccliseus 283 

Jericho,  Singular  Tradition 288 

Jeroboam's  Golden  Calf 268 

Jerusalem  a  Buried  City 128 

Jerusalem,  City  of  David 123 

-Jerusalem,  First  Impression 127 

-Jerusalem,  Great  Antiquity ......  124 

-Jerusalem,  Present  Population  . . .  116 

Jerusalem,  Solemn  Reflection. . . .  123 

Jewish  Prophets 501 

Jewish  Tombs 172 

-Jews  in  Jerusalem 118 

-Jezebel,  Thrown  to  the  Dogs 262 

Job,  Character  and  Writings 391 

Job,  Traditional  Home 389 

John,  Apostle  and  Evangeli8t.474,  496 

John  Baptist,  Baptizes  Christ..  199,  284 

John  Baptist,  Birthplace 197 

John  Baptist,  Diet  of 200 

John  Baptist,  Beheaded 327,  432 

John  Baptist,  Preaching 198 

Jonah's  Tomb,  Neby  Yunus .....  408 

Jordan,  Pilgrims  Batliing 284 

Jordan,  Source  of 272,  275,  282 

Jordan  Valley,  Volcanic  Forma- 
tion    578 

Joseph  in  Egypt 65 

Joseph,  Tomb 258 

Joseph's  Well,  Cairo 553 

Jupiter  Amon,  Egyptian  God. ...  62 

Jupiter,  Temple,  Baalbec 437 

Kaaba,  Mecca 513 

Kadesh-barnea 106,  222 

Kamak,  Great  Temple 61 

Karnak,  Hall  of  Ancestors 65 

Karnak,  Hall  of  Columns 64 

Kedron  Valley 135 

Kerak,  King,  Sacrifices  his  Son.. .  324 


PAoa 

Kerak,  Kir-Hareseth  of  Bible 320 

Kerioth 381 

Khan  Jubb  Yusuff,  Joseph 268 

Khan  Minyeh,  Capernaum 264 

Khan,  Oriental  Inn 194 

Khedive  of  Egypt 35,  39,  550 

Kingdom  of  Christ 504 

King's  Highway 348,  419 

Kiijath-Arba,  Hebron 213 

Kishon  River  and  Valley 238 

Knights  of  St.  John 233,  238,  530 

Knight  Templars 159,  280,  531 

Kunawat,  Kenath  of  Bible 383 

Laban,  the  Syrian 401 

Lako  Huleh,  ^Vaters  of  Merom.. .  268 

Land  of  Beulah 317 

Land  of  Ham 83 

Land  of  Israel,  Under  Solomon.. .  110 

Land  of  the  Pharaohs 537 

Laodicea,  Iluins  of 494 

Large  Stones,  How  Moved 466 

Last  Judgment,  Egyptian  Sculp- 
ture,      85 

Latin  Kingdom  of  Jerusalem  ....  530 

Layard,  Great  Explorer 408 

Layard's  Discoveries 597 

Legends,  As.syrian 413 

Legends,  Mohammedan.  .159,  288,  334 
Lehi,  Hill  of,  Samson's  Jaw-bone.  230 
Lejah,  Trachonitis,  Argob  ....    • .  394 

Levitical  Cities,  Plan  of 422,  423 

Library,  Alexandrian 35 

Lion's  Den,  Babylon 416,  583 

Little  Stone  Kingdom 504 

Locusts  and  Wild  Honey 199 

Locusts,  not  Eaten  in  Palestine.. .  201 

Lost  Arts,  Skill  of  Ancients 462 

Lot's  Daughter 300 

Lot's  Wife,  Pillar  of  Salt 298,  577 

Luxor,  Ruins  of 61 

Lynch,   Lieut,  Report  on    Dead 
Sea 303 


806 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


PAGE 

Macarius,  Bishop  of  Jerusalem .. .  164 

Machserus,  Fortress  and  Castle 325 

Machserus,  Prison  of  Jolin  Baptist.  327 

Machpelah,  Cave  of 172,  217 

Magdala,  Home  of  Mary  Magda- 
lene   264 

Magi,  their  Country 392 

Mahanaim,  Jerash 362 

Mamelukes  Massacred 48,  553 

Mamre,  Plain  of 214 

Manoah's  Sacrifice  and  Tomb.229,  231 

Mariamne,  Wife  of  Herod 306 

Mariette  Bey,  Egyptologer 28 

Mark  Twain's  Logic 26 

Mar's  Hill,  Athens 498 

Masada,  Fortress 305 

Maspero,  Professor 543 

Maudslay  Henry,  Archaeologist. . .  177 

Mausolus,  King  of  Caria 459 

Mausoleum  of  Apis 57 

Mecca,  Pilgrimage  to 613 

Mederaet  Haboo,  Temple  of 68 

Medes  and  Persians 503 

Melchizedek,  King  of  Salem 145 

Memphi.s,  Capital  Lower  Egypt- .     53 
Menephtah,  Pharaoh  of  Exodus. .     54 

Meribah-Kadesh 106,  223 

Mesopotamia  in  Syria 401 

Methodius,  John,  Old  Church 399 

Michmash,  Jonathan's  Adventure.  257 

Mite,  Widow's 312 

Mizraim,  Hebrew  for  Egypt 537 

Mohammed's  Tomb 510 

Mohammed  Ali,  Viceroy 549 

Mohammedanism,  Rise  of 509 

Monuments  of  Egypt 538 

Monumental  Tablets 446,  446 

Mounds,  Ancient  Tombs 491 

Mount  Calvary 167 

Mount  Carmel 244 

Mount  Gilead 350,  352 

Mount  Moriah 145 

Mount  Tabor 248 

Mount  of  Temptation 290 


Moabite  Images 345 

Moabite  Stone 337 

Moabite  Vase  and  Pottery 420 

Moab,  Land  of 315 

Mohammed  Ali 35 

Monastic  Life 290 

Moreh,  Plain  of 258 

Mordecai's  Gate  and  Tomb 419 

Moses  Dies  on  Pisgah 346 

Mosque  el  Aksa 159- 

Mosque  of  Omar 157 

Mugheir,  Ancient  Ur 584 

Mummies  of  the  Old  Pharaohs. . .  »541 

Mummy  Pits,  Egypt 54 

Musmeih,  Ancient  Phseno 400' 

My  cense,  Ruins  of 593 

Naaman's  House 432^ 

Nablous,  Ancient  Shechem 261 

Naboth's  Vineyard 262" 

Nahr-el-Kelb,  Dog  River 444 

Names,  Significance  of 04 

Napoleon's  Cruelty  at  Jaffa 120 

Napoleon's  Repulse  at  Acre 237 

Natural  Bridge,  Lebanon 442^ 

Nazaretli,  Home  of  Jesus 262 

Nebo,  Mount  and  City 342,  347 

Necropolis  of  Egypt 54 

Nejra,n,  Lejah 396- 

Nestorians 376 

Nineveh,  Ancient  Capital  Assyria  404 
Nineveh,  Interesting  Discoveries. .  409 
Noble  Cave,  Well  of  Spirits 152 

Oak  of  Abraham 215^ 

Oaks  of  Bashan 358,  367 

Obelisk  in  Central  Park 547 

Obelisk  of  Heliopolis 43 

Obelisk  of  Karnak 65 

Og,  King  of  Bashan 368,  399 

Olivet,  Mount 153 

Omar  Calif 157 

Ophir,  Gold  Mines  of 101 

Oppert,  Dr.,  Archseologist 580" 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


607 


PAOI 

Oriental  Khan,  Inn 194 

Oriental  Scenes 38,  241 

Origen,  Grave  of 242 

Oman  the  Jebusite 145 

Osher  Tree,  Apple  of  Sodom 296 

Ottoman  Empire,  Despotic  Power.  459 

Padati-Aram 401 

Palace  of  Sardanapalus 697 

Palestine  in  Relation  to  Egypt. . .     23 

Palestine,  Origin  of  Name 224 

Palestine,  Present  Condition 113 

Pan,  Temple  and  Grotto 273 

Papal  Occupancy  of  Jerusalem. . .  118 

Paradise,  Location  of 275 

Pasha  el  Jezzar,  Cruelty  of. 238 

Passage  of  Red  Sea 93 

Pas.sover  Instituted 23 

Patmos,  Island  of 475 

Patriarchs,  God's  Covenant  with . .  109 

Pella,  Christians'  Flight  to 362 

Pen iel,  God  Appears  to  Jacob  at. .  109 
Pergamos,  Parchment  First  Made  483 

Peter  the  Hermit 523 

Petra,  Ancient  Edom 101 

Pharaoh's  Army  Destroyed 95 

Pharos  of  Ptolemy " 34 

Pharpar  and  Abana . .  402 

Philadelphia,  Ancient 493 

Philip's  Fountain 196 

Philistines,  Extinct  Race 226 

Philistines,  Plain  of  Philistia  ....   224 
Philistines,  Royal  Cities  of. . .  226,  228 

Phcenix,  Legend  of 42 

Pi-hahiroth 93 

Pilgrims  Bathing  in  Jordan 284 

Pilgrims  to  Tomb  of  Christ 169 

Pisgah,  Mount  Nebo 342 

Pisgah,  Springs  of 343 

Pisgah,  Outlook  From 348 

Polycarp,  Martyrdom  of 482 

Polygamy,  Soudan 563 

Pompeii  and  Herculaneum 589 

Pompey'8  Pillar .% 


PAOE 

Pool  of  Hezekiah 170 

Pool  of  Siloam 134,  202 

Pools  of  Solomon *.....  203 

Porter,  Rev.  J.  L.,  Giant  Cities.. .  375 

Prehistoric  Cities 594,  599 

Protestants  in  Jerusalem 116 

Prussian  Hospital,  Beirut 443 

Prophecy  Fulfilled 516,  549 

Pyramids  of  Ghizeh 45,  575 

Quarantania,  Mount  of  Temptation  290 

Quarries  of  Syene 81 

Quarries  Lender  Jerusalem, 148 

Queen  of  Sheba 110 

Rabbah  Ammon 318 

Raboth  Moab,  Ancient  Ar 319 

Rachel's  Tomb 193 

Rahab  the  Harlot 288 

Railroad  to  Persian  Gulf 238 

Railroad  Up  the  Nile 81 

Raraeses  II.,  Statue  of 53 

Rameses,  Site  of  the  City 92 

Ramesium,  Colossal  Statue 74 

Ram  with  Two  Horns 507 

Rassam,  Mr.,  Archaeologist 408 

Raynald  Chatillon,  Lord  of  Kerak  323 

Rehoboam,  Son  of  Solomon 67 

Relics  of  the  Old  Egyptians 27 

Religion  of  the  Hebrews 30 

Religion  of  the  Old  Egyptians.. ..    30 

Religious  Fanaticism. 187 

Religious  Mysticism    452 

Rich,  Mr.,  English  Traveler 408 

Richard  Coeur-de-Lion 532 

Ridgaway,  Dr.,  Lord's  Land. 307,  325, 

347 
Rizpah  Guarding  her  Sons'  Graves  255 

Robbers'  Retreat,  Arbela 264 

Robinson's  Bridge 151 

Rock-hewn  Tombs 174 

Roman  Roads 319,  329,  334 

Rosetta  Stone,  Discovery  of 29 

Roman  Aqueduct.  Beirut 444 


608 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


PAGE 

Revelation  Confirmed 579,  583 

River  of  Egypt,  Nile 537 

Roman  Empire 503,  508 

Royal  Library,  Assyrian  King. . . .  597 

Salcah,  Citadel 379 

Samaria,  Ruins  of 262 

Samson,  Birthplace,  Zorah 229 

Samson,  Exploits  of 230 

Samson,  Death  and  Burial 231 

Sakara,  Pyramids 643 

Saracens 507,  549 

Sardis,  Queen  City  of  Asia 487 

Sardanapalus,  King  of  Assyria.. ..  409 

Sargon's  Palace  Recovered 407 

Schliemann,  Dr.  Henry 592 

Scientific  Investigations 139 

Sculpture,  Assyrian 408,  410 

Sculpture,  Egyptian 512 

Sealed  Fountains 202 

Sea  of  Galilee 263,  267 

Secret  of  Masonry 548 

Sennacherib's  Palace 408 

Sennacherib's  Library 413 

Sepp,  Dr.,  of  Prussia 242 

Serapeum,  Great  Temple 57 

Sesostris,  Tablets  of 446 

Shalmaneser  II.,  Palace  of 410 

Sharon,  Plain  of 233 

Shiloh,  Tabernacle  Set  Up 258 

Shusban,  Ruins  of 418 

Sidon,  Early  History 447 

Simon  the  Tanners  House 426 

Sinai,  Mount,  Ras  Sufsafeh 99 

Sinaitic  Inscriptions 576 

Sippara,  Oldest  City  Known 599 

Smitten  Rock 223 

Smith,  George,  Eminent  Oriental- 
ist    408 

Smyrna 481 

Smyrna,  One  of  the  Seven  Churches  443 

Smyth,  Piazzi,  Theories 50 

Snow  Storm  on  Lebanon 276 

Sodom  and  Gomorrah..  ..297,  299,  578 


Solomon's  Great  Wisdom 110 

Solomon's  Temple,  Site  of 151 

Sons  of  the  Prophets,  Grotto 246 

Solomon's  Wife,  Pharaoh's  Daugh- 
ter      23 

Solomon's  Gardens,  Wady  Urtas. .  205 

Solomon's  Pools 203 

Soudan,  Extent  and  Fertility 559 

Southern  Cross 514 

Sphinx,  Legend  Concerning 51,  57S- 

Stanhope,  Lady  Hester 451 

Stone  of  Foundation 152 

Stone  Houses 371 

Storm  on  Lebanon 43^ 

Strong  Towers 384 

Strong,  Dr.  James 316,  347 

Stork,  Sacred  Bird 445 

St.  Sophia,  Church  of 472 

Suez  Canal 39 

Suez,  Crossing  of  the  Israelites ....     93 

Suez,  Gulf  of 91 

Subeideh  Castle,  Phoenician 275 

Suweideh,  Ruins  of 383 

Sulphur  Springs,  Zurka  Main 335 

Sultan  of  Turkey 470 

Synagogue,  Masada 307 

Talraudic  Account  of  Temple  ....  152 

Tax  Collectors,  Extortion 1 14 

Tell  el  Kady,  Ancient  Dan 268 

Tent  Life  in  Holy  Land 112,  253 

Thebes,  No  Amon  of  Scripture. ...     60 
The  East,  Country  East  of  Jordan.  391 

Temple  of  the  Moon,  Ur ...  584 

Temple  of  Sais,  Egypt 548 

Thomson,  W.  M.,  D.  D.,  "Land 

and  Book" 443 

Threshing  Floor  of  Araunah 145 

Threshing  Machine,  American 237 

Thyatira 486 

Tiberius 263 

Tomb  of  Bishop  Kingsley . .  442 

Tomb  of  Christ 166 

Tomb  of  David 176, 178 


GENERAL,    INDEX. 


60» 


PAGE 

Tomb  of  Joseph 173 

Tomb  of  Joshua 180 

Tomb  of  Judges 173 

Tomb  of  Kings,  Jerusalem 173 

Tomb  of  Patriarchs 216 

Tomb  of  Rachel 192 

Tomb  at  Sakara,  Interior 544 

Tomb  of  Stephen 182 

Tomb  of  Tih,  Egyptian 58 

Tombs  of  the  Kings,  Egypt. . .  78 

Tower  of  Babel,  Rebuilt 586 

Tower  of  Syene 537 

Transfiguration,  Mount  of 275 

Treasurers,    Buried 448 

Troy,  Recovered 593 

Turkish  Bath 434 

Turkish  Rule  in  Palestine 114 

Turkish  Soldiers 115,  187 

TyropcEon  Valley 145,  151 

Tyre,  Interesting  Discovery...  241 

Tyre,  Cathedral  of 242 

Upper  Room,  With  Plan 177 

Ur  of  the  Chaldees 401,  584 

Urban  II.,  Pope 523 

Urim  and  Thummim 153 

Uz,  Land  of 389 

Uz,  Founder  of  Damascus 389 

Valley  of  Ajalon 122 

Vases,  Egyptian 72 


PASB. 

Vases,  Moabite 420 

Vaults  Under  Temple.  Platform. .  142 

Veiled  Women 38 

Virgin's  Fountain 202. 

Virgin  Mary  Visits  Elizabeth. .  . .  197 

Vocal  Memnon 75 

Vyse,  Col.  Howard 48 

Wady  Mojib,  River  Amon 320 

Wady  Musa,  Valley  of  Moees. . . .  344 

Wady  Mukatteb 100 

Wady  Tawarik 93 

Walk  about  Zion 133 

Wailing  Place  of  Jews 129 

Wells  of  Moses 95 

Wells  of  Abraham 222: 

Well  of  the  Leaf 159 

Widow's  Mite 312 

Wilderness  of  Wandering 101,  577 

Winged  Globe 63 

Winged  Lion 408 

Winged  Lion,  As-synan 607 

Wolseley,  Sir  Garnet 557 

Women  of  Egypt 556  . 

Women  Grinding  at  Mill 136 

Zedekiah  Carried  to  Babylon 446 

Ziz,  Cliff  of 310 

Zodiac,  Temple  of  Denderah 28 

Zoar,  Site  of. 300 


ADDITIONAL  LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAOB. 

Antioch 528 

Assyrian  Explorations 505 

Avenue  of  Sphinxes — Karnak 599 

Bedouin  Chief— Soudan 616- 


610  LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAffK 

Bedouin  Lances 555 

Birs  Nimroud,  Tower  of  Babel ( 588 

Cairo,  from  tlie  Citadel 551 

Cleopatra's  Needle 565 

Coins  of  Sardis 488 

Creation  Tablet 595 

Crusader  Knight 519 

Cylinder  Seal,  Assyrian 584 

Egyptian  Granaries 573 

Embalmed  Apis 542 

Laodicea 494 

Mohammed's  Tomb ......; 511 

Palace  of  Sardanapalus,  Restored 581 

Pergamos 483 

Philadelphia  — Ancient. 493 

Process  of  Moving  Large  Stones 467 

Mummy  of  Kameses  II.,  the  Oppressor  of  the  Hebrews,  1430  B.  C 541 

Sarcophagus  of  Ashmunazer 449 

Sardis— Temple  of  Cybele 489 

Smyrna — Ancient  Coins. . . .  .^ - ^ 481 

Thyatira 486 

Vase  of  Pergamos ^..-.«-.^ ..«...« 484 


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